5 Signs That You Need To Replace Your iPhone

Don’t know when to say goodbye to your current iPhone and get a newer one? Maybe we can give you the nudge you need.

- Jason Cross

Do you really need a new iPhone? They’re so expensive now, and yours is…fine. It’s fine. You’ve never been one of those people who need a new phone every year, or every other year, anyway.

How do you know when it’s time to take the plunge and ditch your old iPhone for a new one?

We’re definitely not one to encourage the cycle of nonstop iPhone upgrades. Hanging on to your phone for a long time is a good thing. But just as some users feel compelled to upgrade way too often, others stubbornly refuse to get a new phone until their current one literally won’t function at all, and might need a little help accepting that their old phones holding them back.

If one or more of these signs apply to you, perhaps it’s time to replace your iPhone.

1. YOU CAN’T GET iOS UPDATES ANY LONGER

Apple does a better job than any other phone maker of supporting old hardware with a new version of its operating system. iOS 12 is supported by iPhones going all the way back to the iPhone 5s (released in 2013) and iPad back to the third-generation iPad and iPad mini (released in 2012). That’s six years old!

And Apple even put special effort into making iOS 12 run better on older devices than earlier versions of iOS. It’s a difference you can feel immediately.

If you can’t run iOS 12, it’s definitely time to upgrade. Not only are earlier versions of iOS missing important features, but there are critical security updates in every iOS release, too.

When iOS 13 is released later this year, it cut off support for the oldest devices supported by iOS 12. If and when that happens, if you can’t make the new cutoff, consider your old iPhone end-of-life and put it to pasture.