We asked, you told us: Most of you keep phones between one to two years

Smartphone manufacturers typically stick to a very strict release schedule which usually includes releasing at least one new phone every year. But with premium handsets costing anywhere between $700 and $1,000, it’s not feasible for many to buy a new phone every year.

Keeping a device for more than a year isn’t the end of the world, but it means that you probably won’t get all of the latest and greatest features. For some, this isn’t that big of a deal. For others, this is a reason to switch phones more often.

So we decided to ask you, are you switching phones every year, two years, or are you holding onto your handsets until they’re dead? Here’s what you had to say.

How long do you usually keep a phone?

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Results

Unsurprisingly, most of you voted that you’re keeping smartphones for a least one to two years, with a large percentage of people holding onto handsets for over two years.

These results are even less surprising when you consider that most financing options usually last around two years. By the time that the device is paid off, it has been one to two years, and there’s a reason to upgrade.

In the grand scheme of things, you aren’t missing much by skipping a single smartphone generation. Yes, some of the new features introduced into Android and by the handset’s manufacturer won’t get added to older devices, but these tend to be minuscule.

Noteworthy comments

Here are some of the best comments from last week’s poll explaining why they voted the way that they did:

• I keep my phones as long as they’re getting major Android upgrades. Since my Pixel 2 will be getting three years of upgrades that’s how long I’ll keep it.
• For me the ideal would be to keep a phone for at least 2 years, my S7 Edge is going strong with almost 3 now
• I buy a new phone when the apps I use advise me that support for my Android version will end. I’m on my second smartphone. First one bought in 2012. Second one bought in 2018.
• I’ve actually had my Note 8 since the day it was released in September 2017, which is weird as I usually change phones every year, not longer than that. It is a great phone though, so no need to upgrade.
• My carrier allow me to upgrade my 2 years plan 6 months early so I usually take up the offer if there’s a good deal. I usually buy a flagship Samsung device just before it get updated for 0 or very cheap up front, so while I don’t have the latest and greatest, I’m sure to get updates for the duration of my contract.
• Buy a flagship, skip one version and upgrade to the following one. Repeat Mode. Reason – Device Hardware and Software are outdated in as early as an year these days.

That’s it for this week, everyone. As always, thanks for voting, thanks for the comments, and don’t forget to let us know what you thought of the results below.

Source: Android Zone

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US Court: Police can’t force people to unlock their phone with biometrics

More U.S. judges are siding with citizens’ privacy rights when it comes to mobile device searches.

A judge for the U.S District Court for the Northern District of California recently ruled that U.S. law enforcement cannot force people to use their face, finger, or other biometric method to unlock their device. This remains true even in instances when a warrant gives law enforcement the right to search the device. The order, first reported by Forbes, is seen as a win for citizens.

Before this order, law enforcement could wrangle people into pressing their thumb on a fingerprint reader or looking at their phone to unlock it. For example, in October 2018 the FBI forced a suspected child abuser to use his face to unlock his phone. At the same time, however, the law does not allow police to force suspects to provide a PIN, password, or passcode. This new ruling puts all unlocking methods in the same playing field, protecting people’s privacy.

At issue are rights guaranteed in the Fourth and Fifth Amendments concerning searches, privacy, and self incrimination.

“If a person cannot be compelled to provide a passcode because it is a testimonial communication, a person cannot be compelled to provide one’s finger, thumb, iris, face, or other biometric feature to unlock that same device,” said the judge.

The relevant case involves an extortion crime tied to Facebook wherein the suspects allegedly demanded payment lest they release “embarrassing” photos of the victim to social media contacts. Law enforcement was granted a warrant to search the suspects’ phones. The police attempted to have the suspects unlock their devices with fingerprint and face identification, but the suspects refused.

While this ruling doesn’t instantly mean every such case in the country should be overturned, it may be used to set precedent in future cases. Moving forward, law enforcement will need to be more careful about privacy and how suspect devices are unlocked.

Of course, police use of GrayKey’s makes this ruling somewhat irrelevant. The GrayKey is a device available to law enforcement that can beat the passcode on iPhones. Officers need only connect the iPhone to the device via Lightning cable and the box does the rest.

Apple responded by adding a function to iOS 12 that defeats this tool by locking out the Lightning port for any purpose other than charging with the phone is secured. It’s not clear if or how the GrayKey handles Android devices.

Source: Android Zone

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