Phone Choices, How Long Should I Hold, What Should I Get?

MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 14:27

Soooo. I currently have an iPhone 6 and enjoy the Apple ecosystem. I don't have a Mac or iPad that I use, but I love iOS and AirPods' convenience with Apple products. The main thing is, the iPhone 6 is getting quite old. It's from 2015 and is lacking in battery, camera, RAM, and processor. I can't get iOS 13 (don't need an iOS I can jailbreak) which is a pity for many reasons (dark mode, new photos app, security changes). I will be able to get a used iPhone XS Max (for free) July next year. My current phone is livable but that is quite a ways away time-wise.

I could get an iPhone 6s/7 [pref. refurb] for now (and be open to do so if I got a really good price). Or I could get a SE (gen 2) and sell as used next year (wonder what resale value would be?). Also open to Android but resale values aren't great. If I got an Android phone (seeing as I'm compromising on iOS, I'd like as little bezel as possible).

So, really cheap iPhone 6s/7, SE2 then resale, Android cheaper phone to hold me over. Any opinions or advice? Thanks.

Mobile

Comments

  • MagicMushroom on 16/04/2020 - 14:49
    +1

    Try some used android phones? Oneplus 7 pro and xiaomi mi 9t pro comes to my mind as bezeless but these are pretty hard to find used. Samsung phones would be easy to find.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 15:22

      Oneplus is hard to get, but the camera's and stock Android are great. I'll look around, thanks for the recommendation

  • Michael1983 on 16/04/2020 - 14:54
    +2

    I'd go for Samsung A50 budget phone or moto G8.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 15:21

      My concern is resale value, but I have to say, the G8 does look very good for the price

  • Caped Baldy on 16/04/2020 - 15:18
    +1

    If you don't mind the relatively big bezels and single camera the iphone SE2 is a good deal with the latest a13 chip and touchID. It should be decent for a while, unless the battery craps itself like my 6s. It should hold it's value and you may not like the gesture navigation.

    Of course you could go to the dark side, there are regular android deals for less than $400 and if you don't sell it you won't have to deal with buyers on ebay and scumtree.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 15:24
      +1

      The SE2 is a great phone (will have updates for 4+ years), and it's being apple helps with the reselling price. Still curious how much I'd get back. It's probably the safest choice for me. Maybe see if I could get it cheaper than RRP, not much luck with Apple though.

      • Caped Baldy on 16/04/2020 - 15:59

        Didn't realise you were still a student. Apple has education discounts, not sure if this includes iPhones. Alternatively, you can get discounted JB vouchers or Officeworks price beat.

        If the battery is the main grip, it is cheap to replace and battery packs aren't expensive.

    • barghunt1 on 16/04/2020 - 16:36

      Based on todays exchange rate and including GST should've been priced at $700ish. Australia Tax strikes again.

      • ThithLord on 16/04/2020 - 16:41
        -1

        It's $749AUD including GST, whereas the US prices doesn't include the sales tax until purchase. Their prices are actually within $30/40 of ours, to be honest!

        • barghunt1 on 17/04/2020 - 08:47
          -1

          No actually 399 usd to aud is currently about 627 plus GST actually ends up at about 690. So its 60 aud difference which is not pocket change.

          Some of the early overnight articles last night had the aud price of about 629 before apple pricing was released. (The didn't factor in the GST either whereas I did in my previous comment.)

          Should've been priced at 699 here.

          I don't think there would've been the multiple complaints I've seen on forums if it was priced under under 700.

          • ThithLord on 17/04/2020 - 08:53
            -1

            @barghunt1: The price to bring the iPhone to Australia isn't $0, dude. I'm not talking about delivery costs, I'm talking about development/support/after sales is a huge cost for Apple. And don't forget, our statutory warranty is far better here than in the US. So that extra 60$ is absolutely worth it.

            • barghunt1 on 17/04/2020 - 10:13
              -1

              @ThithLord: The phones aren't made in USA. They have to get shipped there from asia just like they get shipped here.

              Aftersales support would've been factored into the USA price. Its not like they aren't making a substantial profit on the device. The phone is just an amalgamation of components from previous iPhones. There is nothing new in this phone to charge a premium in Australia on the US price.

              • ThithLord on 17/04/2020 - 10:44
                -1

                @barghunt1:

                The phones aren't made in USA

                Did you read what I said? I don't even know why you wrote that. It certainly couldn't be a response to anything I said.

                Aftersales support would've been factored into the USA price.

                Dude, check what Australia's statutory warranty is like compared to the US - ours is waaaaay better, and it's for at least two years. An extra year of support, at least. My current iPhone got repalced at the 2.5yr mark. In the USa your warranty is steadfastly honoured exactly 365 days later. You'd have to be pretty daft to not factor this into the cost.

                The phone is just an amalgamation of components from previous iPhones. There is nothing new in this phone to charge a premium in Australia on the US price.

                Sure, it's the iPhone 8 chassis. You didn't elaborate why this matters? You really think they just chuck all these parts in haphazardly?

                Whether or not there are new parts isn't going to affect the price difference between Australia and the USA; that's absurd - so your second sentence is a non-sequitur.

  • plmko on 16/04/2020 - 15:23
    +2

    Just go to a repair shop and swap out your iP6 battery. I would hold out if you know you are going to get a better phone next year.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 15:27

      Honestly, I'm not super opposed to that. The Covid-situation affects my ability to get stuff in-store, so I'm less confident than normal. I'd snap for the SE(2) if I got it at a good price and knew I could get a good price for it. Also, July (next year) is about 14 months which isn't too far away. I live far away from my (high) school and my phone is my main entertainment on the bus trip (hour-there, hour-back) but due to working at home for this term (Victoria, thanks Dan) my needs in that area are more limited as I use my phone less.

      • bdl on 16/04/2020 - 17:23

        Plus if selling your IP6 in the near future, you can probably get more for it saying you swapped out the battery April 2020

      • Kangal on 16/04/2020 - 19:04

        If the new iPhone SE is going to be USD $400, that converts directly into AUD $634.
        Add in the cost of shipping, and the "stupid tax" also known as the "aussie bonus" and it'll be launching here for at least AUD $750.

        …suddenly it's not very midrange/affordable anymore!
        (and it's not even a small phone, it's an iPhone 6 with a newer camera and soc)

        I don't think you should even THINK about resale values for phones, not unless you're going to be buying-selling frequently (1-2 yearly). The best reason to get an iPhone is for the longevity. Eg, spend $900 now, and keep it for 4 years without issue. Whereas Android is much worse when it comes to the speed of updates, their frequency, and the duration of updates. So they don't age as gracefully.

        Since you're into jailbreaking, I would say you should jump ship to Android. Get a midrange device that has community support, or at least is root-able. And keep it as long as you would keep an Android Flagship phone (2-3 years). At the end, just upgrade/sidegrade to a new midrange device. Over the long run, you'd be saving money from not getting a flagship or iPhone…. but it does require impulse control.

  • barbarella on 16/04/2020 - 15:41
    +2

    What about an Oppo?…They work like an iphone. One of the cheaper ones…just over $200 would do you. Checkout BigW and places like that for prices.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 16:13

      Oppo is good value, I'll keep an eye out for a deal

  • AustriaBargain on 16/04/2020 - 17:02
    +1

    I bought an ex demo iPhone XS for a little under $800 through Kogan marketplace and it's performing like new. Battery lasts two days without charging. Screen looks good, it's fast. I'd probably get the new iPhone SE now though, it's nice knowing a battery is brand new and the A13 Bionic is way more important than OLED or a second fixed focal length camera. I might miss Animoji now that i think about it. It's a real Sophie's choice, choosing a budget iPhone.

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 17:47

      $800 is a great price assuming the battery's OK and the storage's OK too. New SE is a great phone 100%, gonna get updates forever. Would recommend for someone in that price range

    • MaccasAU on 16/04/2020 - 17:49

      Oooohhh, that's a good price. Would consider it more seriously but LG phones don't have too good resale value as far as I can see on eBay

  • Marcsie on 16/04/2020 - 19:15
    -1

    How long is my finger ?

  • SlartiBartFozz on 17/04/2020 - 14:35

    If you want the latest thing right now, you should wait till the end of April — the new iPhoneSE will be released, with Apple's fastest A13 chip from the iPhone11, older models will drop in price, especially in the second hand market. Alternatively the Samsung Galaxy A11 / A31 / A51 are all brilliant value, all should be available this month.

  • sim36 on 18/04/2020 - 13:37
    +1

    just put a new battery in it. when it breaks, replace it.

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