"People used to replace their iPhones every few years. There was a time when every new iPhone felt like an all-new device, packed with new features and significant leaps forward in hardware capabilities. As the iPhone became more refined, however, these new features felt less bombastic and more incremental with every new version. This, combined with increasingly resilient hardware, means that the consumer upgrade cycle has slowed down."
"At the beginning of the year, I told myself I'd upgrade to the iPhone 17 when it came out this fall. Five years with one phone is enough, right? Well, now that it's here, I've changed my mind. I'll be waiting another year. Why? Because my iPhone 12 is still good. The battery still rocks, my display only has one hairline crack, and it'll run Apple's latest operating system: iOS 26."
Apple announced the iPhone 17 lineup, including a new slim iPhone Air model. Many consumers will not be compelled to upgrade despite several hardware updates. Longer hardware lifespan and increasingly incremental feature changes have slowed the upgrade cycle. A study projects an average of 2.93 years between phone upgrades by 2027. Some users with older models like the iPhone 12 are delaying upgrades because their devices still perform well. These older iPhones often retain good battery life, minor cosmetic wear, and support for iOS 26. iOS 26 is available on devices as far back as the iPhone 11, maintaining ecosystem functionality across multiple generations.
Read at ZDNET
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