Although smartphones can last many years if they are well cared for, there comes a time when it is no longer advisable to use them. As much as they have an impeccable appearance and have lost little in performance, it is time to make the change due to lack of performance or simply because your battery no longer lasts a whole day or the camera falters.
Manufacturers are creating more resistant phones that last longer, with materials that make them more resistant to falls, scratches and bumps, but they don’t end up lasting as many years. It usually changes a lot before the age of 10, something that did not happen with the old mobile phones that were only used to talk and send messages.
At most, a mobile has 6 years of support
After a while, current smartphones will not have operating system or security updates . Manufacturers commit to years of updates that reach a maximum of 6 years in the case of Apple, and up to 5 years in many Android models, especially high-end ones, such as those from Samsung or Google.
Other brands may offer 2-4 years, or none, depending on the manufacturer and model. Rugged smartphones, which are precisely designed to last, do not, however, have many updates. Therefore, you will not find a mobile of 10 years or more of this type either.
Another factor for a phone to last a long time with support has to do with the community, which invites brands to send many security updates. To give an example, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have been launched on the market in September 2017 and this year they will stop updating. Although they can last a few more years due to the many users who still use them, they will not reach the 10-year figure by far.
You might find yourself somewhere with a refurbished iPhone 7 or iPhone 6S , though you shouldn’t expect much from them as they don’t get any new updates right now. With Android mobiles, far from improving things get worse, since there are few models that are designed to resist for so long. The one that offers the longest is the Fairphone 2, with 7 years , although it does not comply either, it does not reach 10 years.
If a smartphone is not updated, over time it will become unstable, insecure and could become the perfect target for cybercriminals . In addition, it will not receive improvements that now or in due course will become almost essential for us. In the same way, it will no longer be compatible with applications that we need in our day to day.
Repairing them does not compensate
We could try to extend the life of a mobile by fixing it, but unfortunately the components are out of date and more resources are needed for current applications, games and other applications. These become more demanding than at the time you bought the mobile, so it is convenient to change it before, even if it resists in other aspects.
For example, changing RAM cannot or is not worth changing, and even if the mobile has a lot of RAM, in the end there will be mobile services that end up demanding more. Right now 2 GB of RAM isn’t too much when it used to be a great figure, and probably before 10 years the 8 or 16 GB of RAM that many mobiles have will end up falling short, not to mention storage, something that in less of those 10 marked years is far from what is necessary .
The guarantees of mobile phones in Spain are 3 years , and although there are repairs that are still worthwhile after this period so that it can last a few more years if it is in good condition, they cannot be extended too long if they end up having more problems or repairs. . In addition, there comes a time when there are no components or it is not worth changing parts because buying a new, more current mobile ends up being more profitable.
However, this could change at some point, although we do not expect it to happen. An expert, president of the FENISS Foundation (Sustainable Energy and Innovation without Planned Obsolescence), has assured that a smartphone could last 10 to 12 years in terms of the mechanical and electronic part. However, today, it is better that you think about the present and buy a mobile that you can afford, but without looking too far into the future, since, at 10 years old, we have already seen that none will make it alive.