Lux's blog

After the latest September Apple event from this year, many people have been saying something along the words in the title of this article, so I decided to share my personal opinion regarding this new announcement, and let me tell you why it's not bad that Apple is stagnating the iPhone.

Where's smartphone tech nowadays anyways?

It's been 16 years since the first iPhone was announced and released, but I'd say the mass adoption of smartphones worldwide was not met until around 2014. Of course, americans will point out that the iPhone became rather popular earlier in their country, which, while true, was not a case of “everyone and their dog has a smartphone in their pocket”. But after this turning point, phone evolution has slowed down. Smartphones have gotten faster and “prettier”, sure, but everyday tasks from smartphones 10 years ago are not too different from the ones now. The main difference is our software has gotten so overly complex that the older generations can't run it anymore, and now the richer population can pack GPUs capable of ray tracing in their pockets. Will many people use them? Not really. Smartphones are clearly not the same productivity devices desktop computers are, and good luck trying to do advanced 3D work on your pocket without needing an extra monitor and some input devices that aren't a touch screen.

But folding displays!

Folding displays still are experimental technology. They depend on flimsy, fragile displays that do not last to time. Let me put an example with another industry trend that suffers from a similar issue: light trucks. In the US, car companies have started aiming light trucks to the average suburban white family, which, in other words, means they made them look more like SUVs and given them flashy new designs. They're also horrendous for anyone willing to actually use them for cargo, ergo many professionals opt for older light trucks in order to pursue their work. Let's apply the same example to smartphones. Would you be glad to daily drive a phone that is more likely to be damaged in your regular usage and for which your workflow depends on compared, to a phone you KNOW it can last you more time? I would personally go with the second option.

Conclusion

Now, let me be clear, I am not an Apple fangirl. I despise the MANY unethical work actions they've done throughout the years, such as poor factory conditions, child labor, greenwashing, union busting... As a free software user, I also dislike how walled their ecosystem is. But this all seems like a rich kid issue. iPhones are “not exciting” anymore because smartphones have reached their limits. If you actually use your smartphone as a tool, then why would you ever need it to do more than it is already capable of? If you're already happy with your iPhone, keep it until it becomes obsolete and maybe then buy the new one, the slightly older one, or perhaps even buy a Fairphone if you can! At least, for the people who decide to get the newest one now, they came in at the right time, considering the new USB-C port.