New iPhone/Apple Watch?

[camfused]

+1 for waiting for a new smaller iPhone.

<rant>
So, over 50% of people are women. For some reason, women's pants have small pockets that are very difficult or impossible to hold smartphones. Yet, Apple continues to make bigger and bigger smartphones. I believe there is a very big market share for a smaller, but full-featured, smartphone...maybe 4" screen, with no bezel.

For some strange reason, Apple is ignoring this market share. My daughter has an SE and hangs on to it, refusing to upgrade, due to it being the only iPhone that barely fits in her pockets.
</rant>

 

[camfused]

My pencil (1st gen) arrived today. It’s still in the box while I ponder what to do with it without an iPad.

Maybe a tiny baton? Like Robert Preston in The Music Man?

“Think, men.... THINK”

https://www.informationweek.com/it-life/apple-pencil-10-alternative-uses/a/d-id/1322140

 

[audreyh1]

+1 for waiting for a new smaller iPhone.

<rant>
So, over 50% of people are women. For some reason, women's pants have small pockets that are very difficult or impossible to hold smartphones. Yet, Apple continues to make bigger and bigger smartphones. I believe there is a very big market share for a smaller, but full-featured, smartphone...maybe 4" screen, with no bezel.

For some strange reason, Apple is ignoring this market share. My daughter has an SE and hangs on to it, refusing to upgrade, due to it being the only iPhone that barely fits in her pockets.
</rant>

That's what I have, an iPhone SE. But I haven't given up. Apple did upgrade the iPad mini. They did eventually come out with the iPhone SE after a spell. I think they may introduce a smaller one next spring. If they do, I'll upgrade.

 

[Rustic23]

I have a 6s with a new battery compliments of Apple, Dw an SE. We will wait until at least next year. DW will not upgrade to a bigger phone, and will be happy to stay with ios 12.

We both have series 4 watches, and see no need to upgrade.

 

[steelyman]

https://www.informationweek.com/it-life/apple-pencil-10-alternative-uses/a/d-id/1322140

That’s great! I’ll play me some “Pick Up Stick”.

 

[calmloki]

Liked the size and pocketability of my 5S, but decided we wanted to have phone service in more locations than AT&T allowed, so bought three "new old stock" unlocked 128GB 6S. Tried to get them running on Red Pocket, which can use Verizon towers, but it was a no-go. Returned those and entered the plain old Verizon build-a-plan market. What an obscure pile of bafflegab and sleight of hand. We sprang for three NOS 128GB 7S to stay with the best battery life and the aluminum back. Verizon is selling them to us over the next 2 years for $5/month (and locked into contract for that time unless we want to pay like those 7s are new current phones). Discount this and that, fee such and so, bonuses and memberships, DD214, creditcard vs checking account payment discounts... We may pay about what AT&T got or maybe double. or more. Frankly I was at the fling money at it till it stops hurting and I can stop.
I do like the increase in screen size and voicemail transcription beta - and the fact that the screen protectors and cases I bought for the 6S phones fit - with a bit of die grinder work.

 

[Ready]

I always look forward to the September launch of new Apple products but the last two years have been quite unimpressive for me. I have an IPhone X (2 years old) and don’t see any reason to upgrade. A better camera is just not important to me, nor is longer battery life.

I’ve upgraded my Apple Watch every year so far. This is the first year I’m going to skip the upgrade. Always on screen is nice but not worthy of spending money to upgrade.

My MacBook Pro is over 7 years old now. I see no advantage of the newer ones so I haven’t upgraded that one either.

Apple just is not innovating any more. It’s been really disappointing to see. I love tech and have no problem spending good money on great products. But upgrading just to get a few small improvements seems unnecessary to me.

For what it’s worth, I spent a lot of time seeing what trade in sites are giving the best price and I found that Maxback was willing to give me $485 for my 2 year old IPhone X while everyone else was in the $300 range.

 

[steelyman]

I also bought a set of AirPods. Talk about a price that seems *way* out of line w/ the product - I mean, it's just bluetooth mini-speakers in your ears! And yet - in just 24 hours I am amazed at how much I love them. The easy switching back and forth between devices, the intuitiveness, the tap-to-skip or play-pause. The 'hey Siri' functionality. I walk four miles a day and just not having to deal with cables is surprisingly beneficial.

I don’t have AirPods but agree that Bluetooth earbuds make a big difference in everyday use. The old style wired ones were popular and the wires hanging off them marked you as cool but the freedom of movement is great. I frequently forget I have mine on throughout the day until they remind me they need a recharge.

They’re a great addition and not expensive. Just pick a pair for their sound quality and enjoy. They’re one of my favorite and most-used purchases this year.

 

[calmloki]

^
Gal thinks people look like they have cigarette butts stuck in their ears. cooool.

Eh. our cat enjoys chewing on her own single wired ear bud while the gal contents herself with the other when drifting off to sleep listening to podcasts.

 

[steelyman]

MacWorld has an article comparing the new basic iPad and the iPad Air.

Overall, the Air fares better in the article. I’m waiting for the basic model to show up and think of it as my tablet with training wheels. I’m expecting it to serve as a replacement for my Chromebook which has been a very good device for six years.

https://www.macworld.com/article/3438658/7th-generation-ipad-vs-ipad-air.html

 

[camfused]

MacWorld has an article comparing the new basic iPad and the iPad Air.

Overall, the Air fares better in the article. I’m waiting for the basic model to show up and think of it as my tablet with training wheels. I’m expecting it to serve as a replacement for my Chromebook which has been a very good device for six years.

https://www.macworld.com/article/3438658/7th-generation-ipad-vs-ipad-air.html

Thanks for that. I am looking at choosing between exactly these two models, on behalf of my sister, and am leaning towards the Air, due to 64GB and a faster chip.

 

[OldShooter]

I typically upgrade our phones every three or four years, buying on CraigsList for $100-200 each.

My sincere thanks to all early adopters, especially those using Android, for eating all that depreciation. Speaking for myself, I do not find depreciation to be a tasty meal.

 

[Jerry1]

I’m waiting for the next small iPhone. These are usually announced in in the spring.

In the meantime, I’m very happy with my full-featured Series 3 watch and feel no need to change.

Same here. I have a 6S that is about two years old. It works just fine for my needs. The only thing I would like is for it to be smaller. If they do come out with a new iPhone that is appreciably smaller, I'm all over it. It does sound like it's in the works. Hopefully we'll see something in the next year or so.

 

[Ready]

In the early days of smartphones it seemed like every year a new product was announced with some really major improvements over the prior model. But in the last two years the biggest change to the Iphones have been slightly improved cameras, and not much else. The IPhone X removed the home button which allowed for a bigger screen with an overall smaller form factor, plus a much sharper looking screen. I was happy to pay for that.

The Apple Watch Series 4 provided a much larger screen than the Series 3, so I was happy to pay for that.

The last meaningful change to the MacBook Pro was in 2012 when they introduced the Retina Display. I was happy to pay for that.

There hasn’t been much else to get excited about.

 

[camfused]

...If they do come out with a new iPhone that is appreciably smaller, I'm all over it. It does sound like it's in the works. Hopefully we'll see something in the next year or so...

The rumors I have seen say one is probably coming, BUT it reportedly will have a notched screen (like the Xs), and be 4.7" or 5.4", and be marketed as an "affordable" iPhone. In other words, Apple will completely miss the boat for those looking for a smaller iPhone (and incidentally, would be willing to pay almost as much as the what the iPhone 11 costs).

I am glad I sold my Apple stock!

 

[mpeirce]

But in the last two years the biggest change to the Iphones have been slightly improved cameras, and not much else.

I agree that the pace of change is slowing and I personally have moved from a new phone very 2 years to a new one every three.

BUT. "not much else" isn't really true. You may not care, but the a lot changes year over year.

- The processor continues to get faster and faster. And especially the GPU that runs much faster. That leads to smoother animations and such. Phones have also added dedicated silicon for machine learning. The latest iPhones are actually faster than most laptop computers.

- Phones have been adding more memory and storage.

- Displays get better - wide color gamuts and brighter colors.

- Better power efficiency - noticeable longer battery life.

- Did you know that the built in speaker is louder than it used to be? And it's stereo now, used to be mono.

- FaceID instead of TouchID. Uses that machine learning circuitry and provides better security.

- Wireless charging

- More cellular bands being supported (telephone companies are using those old unused TV bands we abandoned when TV when digital).

- Better WiFi. Every heard of WiFi 6?

- You do realize phones are virtual waterproof these days. Certainly weren't a few years ago.

Etc. Etc. Hundreds of little things that actually do add up to noticeable improvements over time.

 

[MissGina]

I’m getting iPhone Pro 11 but someone is buying it as my birthday gift. (I got them a Roomba for their birthday). I had the SE ( paid $549) for 3 years and if I wasn’t getting the gift, I would keep my SE. The price of the phone is ridiculous to me personally.

 

[Jerry1]

The rumors I have seen say one is probably coming, BUT it reportedly will have a notched screen (like the Xs), and be 4.7" or 5.4", and be marketed as an "affordable" iPhone. In other words, Apple will completely miss the boat for those looking for a smaller iPhone (and incidentally, would be willing to pay almost as much as the what the iPhone 11 costs).

I am glad I sold my Apple stock!

I’m not so sure they’d be missing the boat. I can’t speak for everyone, but I think the combination of small and less expensive is exactly what I want. I don’t need much from my phone, but I want a smartphone, not a flip phone. So a basic model in the size I want would be welcome, especially at a lower price.

 

[Katsmeow]

I also bought a set of AirPods.

Yes, I like mine too. Surprising how much I like them. I do Apple for my phone, AirPods and iPad. But, Windows all the way for computer.

All of these purchases using the Apple Card and 3% cash-back, of course.

I rarely apply for new credit cards and use my Amex Blue Cash Preferred most everywhere unless the place just doesn't take Amex. But, the Apple Card was very appealing and I applied for it just to use for this phone. I will also use it when I can Apple Pay and get more back than I would on Amex and anywhere that I can't use Amex (except Whole Foods and Amazon when I use the Amazon Prime card through Chase).

So, over 50% of people are women. For some reason, women's pants have small pockets that are very difficult or impossible to hold smartphones. Yet, Apple continues to make bigger and bigger smartphones. I believe there is a very big market share for a smaller, but full-featured, smartphone...maybe 4" screen, with no bezel.

I don't buy clothes until I test the phone in the pocket. That said, I am going this year for the Pro instead of the Pro Max because I wanted to downsize in size without downsizing in features.

Always on screen is nice but not worthy of spending money to upgrade.

That is what I decided as well. I'll see what is available next year.

 

[WestUniversity]

Series 3 watch is doing just fine. Like you I’m due for a replacement on the next plan at AT&T, even though my current 8 Plus is working just fine. Have not decided what I will get, but I’m leaning toward the cheaper of the two new iPhone 11’s. That said however nothing will happen for the next month or so...

 

[audreyh1]

I. So used to the watch face turning off, I’m not sure I want one that stays on LOL! Or maybe during workouts only. Although there glances work well.

 

[steelyman]

https://www.informationweek.com/it-life/apple-pencil-10-alternative-uses/a/d-id/1322140

Well, now I have a magic keyboard and a pencil. No iPad yet. But I can use the keyboard as a drum pad (familiar to anyone who’s had drum lessons) and the pencil as a single drum stick. Progress!

 

[Philliefan33]

My Apple Watch came in handy this morning. DH and I are visiting Nags Head and went out for a walk this morning without wallets or phones. We ended up at Jennette’s Pier, which has a small fee to access.

Alas, no money in our pockets. But Apple Pay to the rescue! Double tap my watch, hold it up to the credit card thingy, and we’re good to go out on the pier and watch the fishermen.

DH still doesn’t quite understand how I did that.

 

[Rianne]

We bought 2-6s from Consumer Cellular, new. $200/each. Mine fits in my jean pockets and other jacket pockets. No reason to upgrade until phones completely fail. They worked great overseas under T Mobil. We switched back to ATT in the states. Had to change sim cards. CC sent them to us, no charge.

 

[GalaxyBoy]

Perhaps this belongs under the "blow that dough" thread, but this morning I ordered two new iPhone 11's for DW and me. Our iPhone 6's (not 6S) are now five years old and the latest version of iOS doesn't support them any longer, so no more security updates.

I considered one of the older models, but I hope to hold onto these phones for at least another five years. Besides, as a former enginerd I love gadgets, and my WR supports it!