How long can a phone be used after its security updates are over?

[Anonymous]

[OneViewpoint]

My old iPhone 6 passed down to my kids just got retired back in October. So 10 or 11 years. The battery had been replaced twice. OS was way out of date. But it still functioned fine for voice, text, and email. It was only scrapped because my kid wanted the larger 6.9 inch screen of the iPhone "Max".

My current phone is an iPhone 11 Pro. That thing won't be retired until it becomes a doorstop. It's "good enough". And I specifically do not want a huge phablet phone.

[jshm2]

It can be used indefinitely. The problem is the OS no longer being supported by the major apps.

However, nearly all phones can be "unlocked" to use newer operating systems instead.

Think of it like a car - you can only really drive that car as long as it's parts are available in case of damage - otherwise you can have 100+ year old cars. But that worries the car makers so they make cars not last that long.

[michael3478]

As long as you want but i would not put anything money related on it like banking and credit cards but for running games and emulators it's fine.

[DryGermanGuy]

For a long time. The third party browser apps still receive updates.

[Asker]

How dangerous it is due to scammers?

[DryGermanGuy]

Scammers use mainly social methods and hope for gullibility and greed.

[Ariesman81]

You'll begin noticing apps not working as the phone's OS becomes more and more outdated.

[In_Trance]

Fafo