Still using iPhone 5s? Apple declares device 'obsolete'; what it means for users

Check out the full list of iPhone models that the tech giant now classifies as 'vintage' and 'obsolete'

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Photo: Reuters file
by

Kirstin Bernabe

Published: Wed 5 Jun 2024, 3:05 PM

Last updated: Thu 6 Jun 2024, 12:11 PM

If you are currently holding an iPhone 5s while reading this article, here's a reality check: That phone is now almost 11 years old*. And, recently, Apple officially declared it 'obsolete' — but what does it mean?

Apple regularly updates a full list of devices which it considers 'obsolete'. These are products that the tech giant stopped selling more than seven years ago.

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Remember when the iPhone 5s was launched to much fanfare in September 2013? Back then, it was touted 'the most forward-thinking smartphone in the world' — with its A7 chip. It was world's first smartphone with "64-bit desktop-class architecture for blazing fast performance", Apple said.

Everybody wanted to have it as shown by sales records in the UAE and elsewhere in the world. That year, until the next, it topped the charts.

It was a reliable phone for many, so it wouldn't be a surprise if some were still using the same iPhone more than 10 years later.

Here's the catch, though: Now that Apple has tagged it 'obsolete', there would be changes:

  • All hardware repairs and services for iPhone 5s will no longer be available.
  • No parts will be available (batteries cannot be replaced, for example).

With outdated hardware, iPhone 5s and other obsolete Apple gadgets would also not be able to receive or instal software and security updates.

Here are other iPhone models on the 'obsolete' list:

  • iPhone
  • iPhone 3G (China mainland) 8GB
  • iPhone 3G 8GB, 16GB
  • iPhone 3GS (China mainland) 16GB, 32GB
  • iPhone 3GS (8GB)
  • iPhone 3GS 16GB, 32GB
  • iPhone 4 CDMA
  • iPhone 4 CDMA (8GB)
  • iPhone 4 16GB, 32GB
  • iPhone 4 GSM (8GB), Black
  • iPhone 4S
  • iPhone 4S (8GB)
  • iPhone 5C
  • iPhone 5S
  • iPhone 6 Plus

Before the phone was added to this list, it was first classified 'vintage' — or those that hadn't been distributed for sale more than five and less than seven years ago, Apple said.

For these 'vintage' devices, some repairs could still be possible, depending on the availability of parts.

Here are the iPhones on the 'vintage' list, which means they could turn 'obsolete' soon:

  • iPhone 4 (8GB)
  • iPhone 5
  • iPhone 6
  • iPhone 6s (32GB)
  • iPhone 6s Plus (32GB)
  • iPhone SE
  • iPhone 8 Red
  • iPhone 8 Plus Red

(*That is if you bought it when it was launched in September 2013.)

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Kirstin Bernabe

Published: Wed 5 Jun 2024, 3:05 PM

Last updated: Thu 6 Jun 2024, 12:11 PM

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