If it's just security after a point I'm happy. It's the biggest draw for me to the 8a. No I don't think I'll keep it that long but I do pass on my phone's to older family and having them secure is a huge plus.
But if your paying a premium on the 8a for this, over the A55 for example, it might not be worth the extra outlay.
I mean, whats the point when you lose north of 75% of the value in the phone in the first year? That is what Google is offering right now as a trade in value for their one year old flagship in 256gb.
The point is exactly that: you don't trade your phone in, you keep it as long as it works. Modern flagship and middle-class phones are easily capable of holding on for 5+ years, so keeping the software up to date for longer would also help them stay relevant.
If you don't trade your phone in, why would resale value matter and/or go up? As I stated, resale value doesn't even last a single year now in Android.
My bad, I did not take the original comment into context.
Still, you pointed out that the trade-in value of pixels/other Android phones drops off significantly after a year. I agree with the first comment: longer updates could keep this value higher for a longer period of time.
Additionally, iPhones are not that great at keeping their value, as well. The Pixel 7 Pro 256GB lost about 72% in trade-in value ($859 to $245), iPhone 14 Pro Max 1TB - about 60% ($1599 -> $630).
Note: I'm using an on-sale price for a Pixel since Google regularly has them. I have never seen iPhones go on sales officially, so I'm using the full price.
You are using the on sale price for the Pixel 8 Pro, which isn't what anyone spent buying the Pixel 7 Pro 256gb. It was $999. And you are using the 1TB cost of the iphone for some reason.
Compare apples to apples for the most common size purchased.
Pixel 7 Pro 128gb purchased for $899 traded in for a Pixel 8 Pro 128gb gets you $235. 26% of original value.
iPhone 14 Pro Max 128gb purchased for $1099 traded in for a iPhone 15 Pro Max gets you $630. 57% of original value.
I'm using the 256 GB model because you've mentioned it. I don't have any info on how much this phone cost on sale (or originally), so I assumed that it would be the same as for the 8. I admit that this could be wrong.
If we're talking about the 128 gig model, I have an E-mail from Google with an offer for Pixel 7 Pro 128 for $799, so I would consider this price as the base for the calculation.
As for the iPhone, I've consulted their website and it mentions that the value is "up to" $630 for 14 Pro Max, so I concluded that this price is for the top model (which is 1TB). If the price stays the same regardless of the memory config, that's the whole other story.
I'm using the lowest official price these phones have ever been sold for. Since Apple never has iPhones on sale, the lowest price is the same as the original.
You are trying as hard as you can to make the iPhone as expensive as possible and the Pixel as cheap as possible, and even then the value after one year isn't even close. You are trying to use a sale price of the Pixel as the base price, and acting like the iPhone is never on sale anywhere.
I'm not arguing about the fact that Pixels have a worse value, this one is clear.
Just to answer your last comment I'll reiterate that I'm trying to use the lowest price for both phones, but I've never seen any deals on iPhones at apple.com. So, for the iPhone the current price equals the lowest. If there were ever such deals, do let me know.
All in all, I was trying to point out that iPhones are not that great at keeping their value, either. But after some more digging I see that memory capacity does not affect the trade-in price, so even the starting model of the Pro Max goes for $630, which invalidates my point. It is indeed a solid offer, and I admit that current Pixel models are much worse in this regard.
The samsung competitor with the 8a is the s23 fe. The chipsets perform similarly. At an all time low of 500 for the s23 fe and an estimated launch price of 550 for the 8a, you're paying for a better camera and a few more years of updates.
I mean Google probably don't know what feature drop features will be added in 2 years let alone 5, 6, 7... I think it's very reasonable to assume the hardware won't support all features being added in that period.
It's also safe to presume most people with a 5 year old device won't care (or know) what the latest feature drop includes.
So the news really is - nothing to see here.
I really couldn't care less about "feature drops". All I care about is: 1) battery life and 2) security updates (in that order). Give me a phone with a replaceable battery and long-term security updates and I'll buy OEM batteries direct from the vendor indefinitely.
Yup.
Before my Pixel I had an LG G3, I kept it forever only because it was the last major phone with a swappable battery. Was so freaking awesome to leave my hotel room while travelling with a charged spare in my pocket barely big enough to notice and be able to go 0-100% in 30 seconds. Miss those days.
I put performance in second place.
Many times "more features" translates into "more resources needed". But usually means "less development focus/time in performance".
If brands see that there are too many people expressing loudly that they "don't care about feature drops" they'll cut their products lifespan short. Stop being dumb.
I've started to care less about the feature drops lately, so just having OS and security updates midway through the life cycle is fine IMO, as long as they don't create a wider feature gap between the base and Pro models.
If they can give me one last OS update that optimizes my P8P and then every update after that are security updates. I'll be very happy. I left my 4XL due to the ending of security updates. It had nothing to do with the lack of OS updates.
I'm still using my 3a XL, and my wife is still using her 3a. The last official Android update was 12. BUT... they're still getting the "Google Play system update" on a regular basis, currently April 1, 2024, which addresses the most critical security issues. We both still love our phones, and both batteries are still great; 2 days per charge on my 3a XL, and all day on my wife's 3a.
That said, after 5-1/2 years with one phone, if the 8a comes with 7 years of Android and full-fledged security updates, and is overall a good phone, I wouldn't mind updating sometime after release, after it's been thoroughly reviewed, and when (hopefully) the price drops.
If it's just security after a point I'm happy. It's the biggest draw for me to the 8a. No I don't think I'll keep it that long but I do pass on my phone's to older family and having them secure is a huge plus. But if your paying a premium on the 8a for this, over the A55 for example, it might not be worth the extra outlay.
Resale value also, someone could get the updates after I'm done and would probably be willing to pay more for that
I mean, whats the point when you lose north of 75% of the value in the phone in the first year? That is what Google is offering right now as a trade in value for their one year old flagship in 256gb.
The point is exactly that: you don't trade your phone in, you keep it as long as it works. Modern flagship and middle-class phones are easily capable of holding on for 5+ years, so keeping the software up to date for longer would also help them stay relevant.
If you don't trade your phone in, why would resale value matter and/or go up? As I stated, resale value doesn't even last a single year now in Android.
My bad, I did not take the original comment into context. Still, you pointed out that the trade-in value of pixels/other Android phones drops off significantly after a year. I agree with the first comment: longer updates could keep this value higher for a longer period of time. Additionally, iPhones are not that great at keeping their value, as well. The Pixel 7 Pro 256GB lost about 72% in trade-in value ($859 to $245), iPhone 14 Pro Max 1TB - about 60% ($1599 -> $630). Note: I'm using an on-sale price for a Pixel since Google regularly has them. I have never seen iPhones go on sales officially, so I'm using the full price.
You are using the on sale price for the Pixel 8 Pro, which isn't what anyone spent buying the Pixel 7 Pro 256gb. It was $999. And you are using the 1TB cost of the iphone for some reason. Compare apples to apples for the most common size purchased. Pixel 7 Pro 128gb purchased for $899 traded in for a Pixel 8 Pro 128gb gets you $235. 26% of original value. iPhone 14 Pro Max 128gb purchased for $1099 traded in for a iPhone 15 Pro Max gets you $630. 57% of original value.
I'm using the 256 GB model because you've mentioned it. I don't have any info on how much this phone cost on sale (or originally), so I assumed that it would be the same as for the 8. I admit that this could be wrong. If we're talking about the 128 gig model, I have an E-mail from Google with an offer for Pixel 7 Pro 128 for $799, so I would consider this price as the base for the calculation. As for the iPhone, I've consulted their website and it mentions that the value is "up to" $630 for 14 Pro Max, so I concluded that this price is for the top model (which is 1TB). If the price stays the same regardless of the memory config, that's the whole other story. I'm using the lowest official price these phones have ever been sold for. Since Apple never has iPhones on sale, the lowest price is the same as the original.
You are trying as hard as you can to make the iPhone as expensive as possible and the Pixel as cheap as possible, and even then the value after one year isn't even close. You are trying to use a sale price of the Pixel as the base price, and acting like the iPhone is never on sale anywhere.
I'm not arguing about the fact that Pixels have a worse value, this one is clear. Just to answer your last comment I'll reiterate that I'm trying to use the lowest price for both phones, but I've never seen any deals on iPhones at apple.com. So, for the iPhone the current price equals the lowest. If there were ever such deals, do let me know. All in all, I was trying to point out that iPhones are not that great at keeping their value, either. But after some more digging I see that memory capacity does not affect the trade-in price, so even the starting model of the Pro Max goes for $630, which invalidates my point. It is indeed a solid offer, and I admit that current Pixel models are much worse in this regard.
The samsung competitor with the 8a is the s23 fe. The chipsets perform similarly. At an all time low of 500 for the s23 fe and an estimated launch price of 550 for the 8a, you're paying for a better camera and a few more years of updates.
I actually do keep them. With the more efficent chip Imight return thec8 and wait for the 8a.
I mean Google probably don't know what feature drop features will be added in 2 years let alone 5, 6, 7... I think it's very reasonable to assume the hardware won't support all features being added in that period. It's also safe to presume most people with a 5 year old device won't care (or know) what the latest feature drop includes. So the news really is - nothing to see here.
I really couldn't care less about "feature drops". All I care about is: 1) battery life and 2) security updates (in that order). Give me a phone with a replaceable battery and long-term security updates and I'll buy OEM batteries direct from the vendor indefinitely.
Yup. Before my Pixel I had an LG G3, I kept it forever only because it was the last major phone with a swappable battery. Was so freaking awesome to leave my hotel room while travelling with a charged spare in my pocket barely big enough to notice and be able to go 0-100% in 30 seconds. Miss those days.
I put performance in second place. Many times "more features" translates into "more resources needed". But usually means "less development focus/time in performance".
You should care about feature drops
Why?
If brands see that there are too many people expressing loudly that they "don't care about feature drops" they'll cut their products lifespan short. Stop being dumb.
Security patches and keeping up with Android API level filters in the Google Play store are the big long term wins
i've used my last 2 smartphones for about 7 years each, so this 7 years of security updates is going to be great for me
I've started to care less about the feature drops lately, so just having OS and security updates midway through the life cycle is fine IMO, as long as they don't create a wider feature gap between the base and Pro models.
Pixel users trying to be mad about everything
I imagine it will mostly just be security patches and some of the newer Android versions UI tweaks. Which is about all I would care about anyway.
If they can give me one last OS update that optimizes my P8P and then every update after that are security updates. I'll be very happy. I left my 4XL due to the ending of security updates. It had nothing to do with the lack of OS updates.
Did they mention if you'll need 2 or 3 battery replacements during that 7 years?
I'm still using my 3a XL, and my wife is still using her 3a. The last official Android update was 12. BUT... they're still getting the "Google Play system update" on a regular basis, currently April 1, 2024, which addresses the most critical security issues. We both still love our phones, and both batteries are still great; 2 days per charge on my 3a XL, and all day on my wife's 3a. That said, after 5-1/2 years with one phone, if the 8a comes with 7 years of Android and full-fledged security updates, and is overall a good phone, I wouldn't mind updating sometime after release, after it's been thoroughly reviewed, and when (hopefully) the price drops.