I used to upgrade my smartphone almost every year. In 2010, my dad got me the Nexus One, and then, in early 2011, I upgraded to an iPhone 4. Again, in 2013, I bought a Galaxy S4 but switched to the iPhone 6 Plus in 2014. Now, I use my phone for at least two years because I don’t feel any reason to upgrade sooner. Annual smartphone upgrades aren’t enticing, and that’s for a few key reasons. Moreover, spending $1,000 to upgrade from an excellent phone like the Google Pixel 8 Pro to the Pixel 9 Pro XL for slightly better hardware seems like a terrible investment.
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The incremental upgrades aren’t worth my money
$1,000+ for two new features and some camera improvements
Gone are the days when smartphones made huge jumps in design, performance, battery life, camera hardware, and display quality. In the last few years, the design changes year-on-year have been minimal. Take the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, for example. It looks almost like the S23 Ultra, except it’s slightly boxier. Even Samsung’s foldables look mostly the same. The Z Fold 6 looks like the Z Fold 5 and Z Fold 4, except it has a slightly wider cover screen and a boxier design.
Performance improvements year-on-year have also slowed down, but that’s not a huge deal. Modern smartphones are fast enough that you won’t notice how much faster the latest Snapdragon chip is under regular use. You’ll need to put two phones side by side and play games to notice a difference. Processor efficiency is a different story because that plays a role in your phone’s battery life. Then again, most high-end smartphones today offer all-day battery life, which is more than adequate for casual users.
Display-wise, most modern smartphones use OLED screens with high refresh rates. What’s the point of getting a newer phone with a slightly higher refresh rate or a slightly brighter screen when your current phone has a good 120Hz OLED display? And don’t get me started on the cameras. Manufacturers can crank up the megapixel count all they want, but smartphone cameras still have tiny sensors, so those improvements are hardly noticeable in the real world.
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Flagship smartphones have become very expensive
You can’t get a flagship phone for under $600 anymore
You could buy a flagship smartphone like the Nexus 6P a decade ago for $499. Even the cutting-edge Galaxy S6 Edge started at $700. Fast-forward to 2025. This price range is reserved for mid-range phones. Even Google’s affordable offering, the Pixel 8a, starts at $499, pricing itself out of the budget smartphone market.
The iPhone X, released in 2017, shocked the world with its $999 starting price tag. But at today’s prices, $999 doesn’t look bad by 2025’s standards. If you want a high-end smartphone like the Galaxy S24 Ultra or the iPhone 16 Pro Max, you’ll pay upwards of $1,200. If you want a cutting-edge foldable, prices are over $1,500.
Spending over a grand, especially when smartphones aren’t improving dramatically from generation to generation, doesn’t seem like a good investment. A flagship smartphone from two or three years ago is still fast enough and takes great pictures. If you own an older smartphone, you may need to replace the battery.
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Modern flagships get long-term software support
Google and Samsung now promise seven years of Android updates
A decade ago, most Android phone makers only promised two years of software updates, even for their high-end flagship models. For example, the Galaxy S5 shipped with Android 4.4.2 KitKat in 2014 but got Android 5.0 Lollipop and Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow updates over the next two years. This meant that Android users needed to upgrade sooner to enjoy new software features. Apple rolled out major iOS updates to its older iPhones for four to five years.
Fast-forward to 2025, and top Android brands are on par, if not better, than Apple in terms of software support, at least according to their claims. Google and Samsung, the two biggest players in the Android space, promise seven years of Android updates for their modern phones, like the Pixel 8, Pixel 9, Galaxy S24, and Galaxy Z Fold 6. Other manufacturers, like OnePlus, are catching up with Apple, promising four years of Android updates for its high-end models like the OnePlus 12 and the newer OnePlus 13.
When I know my current smartphone will receive Android updates for the next four years, I can’t justify spending another grand on a new phone for minimal improvements. At this point, buying a new smartphone every year seems more like a luxury than a necessity. Android users may now understand why many iPhone users keep their devices for years before they upgrade.
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Manufacturers are getting lazy
They prioritize gimmicky AI features over hardware innovation
When was the last time we saw a truly revolutionary smartphone? I can’t remember. While foldables are great, they’re far from perfect for practical use and more prone to wear and tear. I understand that smartphones have reached a point where there’s little to improve. Still, I hope companies try something different to make their phones stand out from the competition.
For instance, companies could push for bigger camera sensors instead of bumping the megapixel count to make photos look noticeably better. Instead, they focus on adding more software features and processing to the camera app, which makes images look oversharpened. Likewise, graphene batteries would be a game-changer in modern smartphones. They have a longer lifespan than traditional lithium-ion batteries, which need replacement after two or three years due to battery degradation.
We don’t see cutting-edge hardware features from smartphone makers nowadays. They seem to focus on pushing more and more AI features that most people don’t use. If I wanted to use AI, I’d download some of the best AI apps from the Play Store or App Store. The lack of hardware innovation from manufacturers is one of the main reasons smartphones aren’t as exciting as they used to be.
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Less exciting smartphones may be a good thing
I feel good knowing I’m no longer tempted to upgrade my smartphone every year. Spending over a grand annually on a smartphone isn’t a wise investment, regardless of how rich you are. Think of your phone as a tool that helps you get the job done. As long as my current phone serves its purpose, I don’t see the point in upgrading to a newer one to do the same tasks. For any noticeable improvements, wait at least three years before you upgrade your smartphone, especially considering 2024’s flagship models promise seven years of support.
