New phone every year pointless?

Snakeeyes21

Is there any point in getting a new phone every year from now on?
Have phones reached the pinacle of what they are able to do?
is every new phone thats launched just going to be filled with pointless gimmics to get the gullible to buy them?

stokefan

better cameras, better video recorders, bigger memory

depends what you want in a phone to be honest

tanith

Of course they are going to be filled with gimmicks so that people buy them otherwise everyone would be like me and keep the phone they have had for years... I think its 5yrs old now and still works perfectly fine for what I need it for...
People will still buy a new one every 6mths or so either cos they want to keep up with mates or there is another new gadget... I want I want I want... seems to be some peoples mantra...

elfen

I usually get only cheap phones (about £40) and they end up breaking or freezing or generally being unreliable and unusable. Considering the area of work I want to go into (film and media freelancing) and the disabilities I have, I need a decent phone. So, for me, going back to contract is a way of having the security that I can get hold of people if I need them (directions, to cancel, to check appointments/make appointments, check medication, stay in contact with OH) and getting a decent phone with the incentive to look after it and keep it (specifically if I get a near top-end that does what I want it to do, and I'll use it longer - so that's the 5800 ATM, which does all I want to use it for - MP3 player, wifi for uni to check emails, camera, maps service to check directions) and I know it'll last me the life of the contract too.

I think phones have the ability to get even better than they are now - it's now we have the tech, but the refinements still need to be made (battery life, start-up and loading speeds) to make them even better

LeeSouthEast

I've had my original Nokia N95 since December 2005 (or was it 2006?). Anyway, it does what I want so I've never bothered to change it and probably won't until it breaks. As a consequence I'm not 'tied' in to a contract beyond the rolling 30-days, and can jump ship at will. Sure it's not fashionable, but it's functional, and that's Money Saving.

It's a nice feeling

rash.m2k

Depends, some phones are really good and do everything you want - like the N95 which I had for over a year before getting the N95 8GB as it was slightly better, and I'm still using the N95 8GB.

Currently there is nothing on the market that offers me the same functionality as the N95 8GB.

iPhone is pretty much useless apart from internet - for which IS the best device.
HTC Hero - same as iphone but much better *overall* device (has multi-tasking which is an absolute must for me)
N97 - is just pointless, slow and no graphics processor, and !!!!!! broweser to be honest. A little annoyed at Nokia for just squeezing everyone for every penny they have got.

So for me it's not about 1 phone every year - it's about a decent overall phone which can do everything I want it to, as soon as that happens I'll be buying it.

For me the most promising one is Android for web browsing, and some decent apps. And perhaps Nokia if Nokia manages to pull their head out their !!! and make a half decent phone with a decent web browser.

Like LeeSouthEast here I seem to be having trouble detatching myself from the N95, it's such a good phone. It's not brilliant at everything - BUT it does EVERYTHING very well.

bert&ernie

http://lastyearsmodel.org/
cant say I buy all the "saving the planet" anti-consumer bull, but an interesting concept all the same.

Viper_7

mobile phone for me goes ring ring.
anything else is just pointless features that are not as good as what they pretend to be.