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-   -   How often do you upgrade your phone? (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/gadgets-computers-software/234617-how-often-do-you-upgrade-your-phone-9.html)

I used to change my phones within 2 years before switching onto the iPhone. This was primarily coz the novelty factor of the Android phones died down fast & also the phones performance starts to degrade with just 2 major OS updates. Not to mention the updated apps too slow down the phones.

However, post getting my first iPhone things have changed, and I am holding onto my phone longer than before.

Surely, with time the Android phones too have gotten better; however I still feel that the iPhones have an edge over them in terms of overall life & hence in all probability will continue using iPhones for the foreseeable future.

Bdw, I love cellphones & they come 2nd to cars! :loveit

Here’s the list of phones I have owned since my first phone!

2006 - 2008: Nokia 3210 (Colour display phones were a thing back then!)

2008 - 2010: Nokia N73 Music Edition.

2010 - 2012: Nokia N8 (This was one heck of a phone. But the disasterous Symbian OS killed it :crying).

2012 - 2015: Samsung Galaxy S III

2015 - 2017: Motorola Moto X 2nd Gen

2017 - present: iPhone 7 (Replaced the battery on this one & using it as my secondary phone. Will continue using till it gives up on me).

2021 - present: iPhone 12 Pro.

Nice thread!

With Android updates being dishes out every alternate year at least, phones seem to be losing their edge in 2-3years of updates. Plus the apps themselves too get massive updates over this period. I usually buy the best available ram version but even that doesn't seem to hold up.

And then there is this temptation to have the best camera out there. But that seems to have hit a patch of meaningless MP / camera module updates while the backend software hasn't kept up. So the camera upgrade cycle also seems to be aligning to the same 2-3yr period when a meaningful update to cameras comes along that tempts you to finally get a new phone.

My old phones are usually used as a GPS navigation device on the bike (lasts another year usually with the abuse) or donated to house helps.

I used to upgrade every 2 years or so for as long as I was using a Android phone. Switched to a iPhone 12 this year and plan to keep it for longer. Off course, I do anticipate a battery replacement at around the 3 year mark, so extra expense to be incurred!

I'm a power user especially installing multiple apps (no games of course) and periodically changed my phone since 2002.

2002 - Nokia 3310
2003- Reliance Phone
2004- Samsung
2005- Sony W series
2006- Sony Carl Zeiss cam model
2007- Moto flip phone
2009- Nokia N82
2011- Motorola Defy
2014- Samsung Note 2
2016- Moto X Style
2018 onwards HTC U11

Happy customer for HTC U11 for it's unique look and feel by that time. Now started showing slowness and lack of latest features forcing me to look for an alternate. I believe factory reset would fix something, but i'd like to keep it as a backup phone.

Started using phones in 2010.

2010 - 2011: Nokia 7210 Supernova (Broken)
2012 - 2013: Samsung Wave 575 3G (Best phone but Whatsapp was not there)
2013 - 2015: Micromax Canvas 3D(Worst purchase, very weak screen)
2015 - 2017: Asus Zenfone 2(ZE551ML) (Best phone from Asus, Given It to fiancee)
2016 - 2018: Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Poor Build, This phone led me to hate Xiaomi)
2018 - Till Date: OnePlus 5T (Best Phone, Rest is history)

I keep my phones for long. So far i have used

Sony Ericsson W200i - From 2007 to 2011 then it was
stolen.
Nokia 6303i Classic - From 2011 to 2015 then
changed it because i needed a
smartphone.
Samsung Guru - From 2012 to 2014 used it
along with the Nokia then it
was stolen too.
Samsung Galaxy S4 - From Jan 2015 to Dec 2018
It was a birthday gift from my
parents. It started giving too
many problems in the 4th year
so had to change it.

Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 - Dec 2018 to till date

There was a time when i used to upgrade my phone almost after every 2-3 years - when I was a bachelor and had more disposable income. Now, since past decade - it has been a 4/5 years or more cycle. I have only used 1 feature / smart phone at any point of time and do not use multiple phones (is a hastle for me). My purchased phones are -

Nokia 3310 - 2004 - 2007
Nokia E51 - 2007 - 2010
Nokia E71 - 2010 - 2012
Iphone 5 - 2012 - 2016
Iphone 7 - 2016 - Till date - am planning to keep it till 2022 atleast

I am not sure of the earlier mobile ownership timelines but here's what I vaguely remember:

• Nokia 1110
• Nokia 3310
• Samsung S2
• Samsung S3 (best phone in that period), got stolen so bought the S4.
• Samsung S4 (worst upgrade from S3 thanks to its useless battery)
• OnePlus One (Sandstone Black) - made me convert from a Samsung lover to OnePlus lover.
• OnePlus 3T (128GB) - Currently using (3 screens changed so far).

Have been using the OnePlus 3T since 2017 and happy with the performance except it gets damn hot (can make on omelette on the back cover). I know it could be because of the battery is almost dead and the screen being non-genuine must not be helping in power management.

It's been almost 2 years that I have been searching for a good replacement for the OnePlus 3T. Had my eyes on the OnePlus 7 onwards but the complaints were constant and even now not many are happy. I love the brand and will prefer sticking to the same but can hardly get one worthy replacement. Getting mixed reviews about the OnePlus 8T (not interested in the OnePlus 9-series, not worth paying that much).

Waiting for the worthy replacement for the OnePlus 3T.

I've somehow ended up holding to my smartphones longer than my dumb phones:

2002-2003 - LG Touchpoint 5250
'03-06 0 Sanyo 4900 (longest I've used in the dumb phone era)
'06-'10 - Motorola C113, Nokia 6030, Sony Ericsson W200, Sony Ericsson W890i
'10-'14 - Samsung S2
'14-'17 - Samsung Note 3
'17-Present - Oneplus 5
'20-Present - iPhone 11

Quick update, now I have a Pixel 4A running Android 12 :Cheering:

My phone upgrade list:

1) Nokia 6600
2) Nokia N73
3) Xperia - Don't remember the model
4) OnePlus one
5) S2
6) S5
7) S7 Edge - 5 years and still running strong.
8) A70 - Current model. 2 years old.

I have bought/used following phones till now

Nokia 3230(2006) - Cost Approx 16K
Sony Ericsson W200i(2007) - Cost Approx 5.5K
Sony Ericsson K790i(2008) - Cost Approx 13K
Samsung Galaxy S(2011) - Cost Approx 18.5K
Nexus 4(2013) - Cost Approx 24K
Moto G2(2015) - Cost Approx 13K
Nexus 5x(2016) - Gift
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1(2018 till now) - Paid Approx 16K


I use the phones till they start to slow down and become so laggy that they are un-usable. The Samsung Galaxy became horribly laggy within the first year. The Nexus 4 died because of a mother board failure within 2 years of purchase. Donated the screen to my colleague who had a cracked Nexus 4 screen. Realized that the mid range phones offer the maximum bang for the buck and hence got the Moto G2. Then got Nexus 5x as a gift that became pretty un-usable because it was a 16GB storage variant. Then bought the Asus 6GB Ram variant and it is holding on pretty well even after almost 3 years! I hope this goes on for another year atleast.

My phones over the years.

Nokia 3250
Sony W750
Nokia 6303i
iPhone 5s
iPhone 7plus

5 phones over the past 15 years. A new phone due this year.

3 years is when I usually replace my phone. Currently with a Samsung S8 planning on a S21 now.

I just counted mine. I went through 23 phones through the course of 22 years. That's about one per year. Except 3 phones (which were gifted) I paid for everything else, 4 of them were bought used.

And they do not include the company provided Blackberrys.

Looks like I wasted a lot of money on mobile phones, but that's okay.