Practically all of my on-line activities is done on a desktop PC, and I don't do social media, so a flip phone for making/receiving calls and texts works fine for me.
If it breaks or needs to be upgraded, a brand new replacement is only $50 - $60.

 

Practically all of my on-line activities is done on a desktop PC.
And I don't do social media, so a flip phone for making/receiving calls and texts works fine for me.
If it breaks or needs to be upgraded, a brand new replacement is $50 - $60.

That's the way to stay happy and healthy. I am on Social media, but I look at it just like the old National Enquirer tabloid or how a woman would watch soap operas. It's all fake.

 

The so called expiration date is only when the phone manufacturer stops making security and other updated for the O/S on your phone. For example, if you have an Samsung phone with Android you will stop getting Android updates after that date

Even after that date people are free to use there phones and many do.

Sure there is a security risk when both Android and IOS no longer receive security updates but most people are willing to take that.

Phones do actually become obsolete for different reasons. Both old Android and IOS phones may not be compatible with cell phone providers and the Internet. If the phone is really old and only has 3G then it was made totally obsolete in 2022 when 3G service was shut down.

BTW, maybe 5 years ago Samsung only provided about 2 years of software updates for their phones. Apple provided software updates for their phones a lot longer than that. Enough pressure was placed on Samsung that they had to increase their support to 5 years now.

 

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I still use my favorite phone, a Samsung Galaxy S10, but I use it as home monitoring via Alfred camera app. They quit updates on that phone a few months back.

 

We use my 2017 only Samsung cheap $70 phone as a camera and mp3 player.

I don't surf on my phones but I do keep the apps updated on both.
It never ceases to amaze me that people buy 52" or larger tvs then spend a major portion of the day staring at things on a 6" screen! It doesn't make any sense to me. At the very least, I'd surf on my 10.1" android tablet.