What you need to know
- Apple unveiled iOS 16 at WWDC last week.
- With it comes the customary end of life for support for its oldest devices.
- The resale value of the iPhone SE, 6S, and 7 have tumbled since the news broke.
New market research indicates that Apple's decision to drop support for some of its older iPhones with iOS 16 has seen their value plummet in just 7 days.
Research from SellCell indicates that the value of iPhones that won't be compatible with iOS 16 has fallen by some 12% in just 7 days since WWDC 2022. From the report:
SellCell, the US' No.1 smartphone price comparison site, has looked into value depreciation data for some of the iPhone 6S, and 7-series models—all of which won't receive the iOS 16 update—in "good" condition, to ascertain how badly this news has affected the value of said handsets.
The iPhone 6S Plus has fallen in price by 11.7%, the 7 Plus by 10%, the 7 by 9.8%, and the 6S by 7.9%, a not-insignificant amount shaved off in just seven days.
These iPhones are incredibly old, and likely make up a very small percentage of Apple's overall iPhone userbase. Furthermore, the value of some devices ($35) for the 6S, means that the fall in price for some devices is negligible. However, it's a really interesting look at how Apple's continued long-term support for all of its best iPhones really helps the devices to hold their value. The iPhone 6S, for instance, has been around since 2015, so that's really a pretty fantastic run in terms of up to date software support.
SellCell says that it recommends trading in your iPhone ASAP to avoid any further depreciation, however that could be a hard sell with the iPhone 14 still a few months away. The iPhone 13 and iPhone SE remain good options as Apple's current best iPhones. In the future, it might be wise to try and get shot of any very old Apple devices before it's annual developer conference, as this is a fixed point each year where you can guarantee that the worth of some devices is going to fall. For instance, SellCell says that the iPhone 8 is likely next on the chopping block, so owners of that devices should be aware ahead of June next year.
iOS 16 brings with it a major lock screen update featuring lots of cool customization options, there's also updates to Maps, new sharing and communication features, and more.
All-new A15 Bionic processor, new cameras, and more
