Is The Verizon iPhone 4 A Bad Buy?
So Consumer Reports has a mixed review of the iPhone 4, stating that an iPhone 5 due in six months is reason to hold off. Which sounds fair at first, but in the larger scheme of things is pretty silly.
With that logic, nobody iPhone owner who was unhappy with AT&T should have purchased the original iPhone 4 six months ago. No, Verizon hadn’t announced the iPhone 4 then, but even six months it was logical enough that I had a gut feeling to hold off. Still, I got an iPhone 4.
Second, Android phones are coming out in droves from various manufacturers with less than six months between, yet according to AppleInsider, Consumer Reports doesn’t dissuade people from purchasing those.
Lastly, we also know very little about the iPhone 5 at this point, other than the rumors of a faster processor, more memory, and possibly a NFC chip. It doesn’t sound like the iPhone 5 will be LTE or 4G. That all might make the iPhone 4 look relatively slow, but I don’t think it will render it obsolete to where I’d recommend nobody to purchase one. The iPhone 4 definitely made my iPhone 3G feel like it needed replacing, but it didn’t render the iPhone 3GS defunct.
With just six months with this iPhone 4, I don’t think it was a bad purchase by any means, and I don’t think the iPhone 4 on Verizon will be either. The best rule for purchasing Apple products is to buy as soon as a new product is announced. That gives you a buffer of a few months when you won’t get burned purchasing something and having Apple announce something soon after. You also have a window of opportunity to sell your gear before it is truly obsolete.
And as any gadget-head knows — any piece of tech you purchase can very quickly become obsolete, if not within six months, a year, or two, and by three years certainly. A better product comes along, stuff gets cheaper, the company goes under, etc. You must factor in the length of time using a product into whether it was worthwhile — six months of daily enjoyment might trump six months spent waiting. And if one constantly worries about whatever you purchase becoming obsolete within a year — you might never buy anything.
To sum up, I think Consumer Reports still hasn’t gotten over being proved ridiculous regarding that antenna gate thing.
Agreed — for some people, it’s worth it. Given how smartphones are moving in leaps and bounds, it’s nice to see that Apple’s not obsoleting their phones until you’d be buying a new one, anyway (in general, you’re stuck with it for two years).
I bought a 3GS a year ago December, and bought an iPhone 4 a couple of months ago (with my dad’s subsidy, heh, so I’ve still got mine). If the iPhone 5 is just a speed bump, I might just stick with mine until the iPhone 6.
I know at least one person who’s getting an iPhone next month, though — she likes her Blackberry, but I think that’s only because she couldn’t use an iPhone at work.
Likewise I don’t foresee replacing my iPhone 4 with an iPhone 5 no matter what is announced. And the spouse is still planning on getting an iPhone 4 on Verizon — in her case, she’s not trying get the latest and greatest (this will be her first smartphone) and so the iPhone 4 will suffice.