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submitted 1 year ago by L4s@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

Smartphone sales down 22 percent in Q2, the worst performance in a decade::North American sales are bad for everyone, except, miraculously, Google.

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[-] 3arn0wl@lemmy.world 125 points 1 year ago

A sign that the smartphone has reached maturity, I guess. People don't feel the imperative to upgrade any more. That's good for the planet!

[-] Dasnap@lemmy.world 40 points 1 year ago

Time to start development on rectal computers.

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[-] SpaghettiYeti@lemmy.world 111 points 1 year ago

Everyone is currently poor as shit.

[-] gian@lemmy.grys.it 52 points 1 year ago

Or, maybe, people realized that there is no reason to get a new phone every year.

[-] FleetingTit@feddit.de 57 points 1 year ago

They are not mutually exclusive, tbf.

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[-] tsuica@lemmy.world 25 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

poor people are poor as shit

rich people who are richer off the backs of poor people are not poor as shit

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[-] cosmicrookie@lemmy.world 104 points 1 year ago

That's what happens when you keep increasing the price without adding value.

[-] jballs@sh.itjust.works 60 points 1 year ago

You mean removing a headphone jack, SD storage options, and removable batteries aren't added value? I know they claim it makes your phone more waterproof, but I don't wanna use my phone in the pool, I just wanna listen to some headphones without charging them.

[-] dustyData@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

No no no. Your phone might be waterproof, but we don't condone the usage of the phone near bodies of water. Intentional submersion of the phone voids the guarantee (actual language on the guarantee of a IP67 waterproof phone).

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[-] crashoverride@lemmy.world 15 points 1 year ago

And coming out with a new one every year despite it being the same as last year's

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[-] altima_neo@lemmy.zip 78 points 1 year ago

Phone price keeps going up but my paycheck keeps going down with inflation

[-] FireWire400@lemmy.world 67 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

They should really stop over saturating the market by releasing new models every year with little to no meaningful upgrades.

Even mid-range phones nowadays are good enough to last long after they stop receiving updates, it therefore makes little financial sense (for the average consumer) to buy the newest model every year, not even touching on the environmental impact.

[-] PopOfAfrica@lemmy.world 66 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

We've hit the wall of diminishing returns. How much power do you need to run lemmy?

Ive got a 4k oled 144hrtz panel in my phone... to read lemmy.

And my pixel 6 is considered aging.

[-] shalafi@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago

Pixel 6, look at Mr. Monopoly over here. I just got a 5 off eBay for $100. In fact, my last 6 or 7 phones came from eBay. Can't imagine why I would pay for the latest and greatest.

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[-] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 55 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

If you're upgrading your device every single time a new device comes along, you're just chasing clout and status. They rarely, if ever, have significant performance upgrades or new features that make sense in upgrading when your current device is perfectly fine.

[-] Lemonparty@lemm.ee 19 points 1 year ago

Phones also aren't special anymore. Like the days where phones were flashy and people needed the best/newest phones are gone. Everyone knows everyone has a phone, nobody cares what phone it is. It reminds me of like 2004-2008 when laptops were a big deal and then everyone had one and it became a tool and people stopped caring what you had.

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[-] dangblingus@lemmy.world 45 points 1 year ago

It's almost as if, they haven't fundamentally updated smartphones in almost a decade, and now they want $2000 for them.

Also, it's almost as if we've been in a recession for a year. Regardless of whether or not the government wants to call it a recession, we've had numerous back to back quarters with negative GDP growth. That's literally a recession.

[-] gohixo9650@discuss.tchncs.de 44 points 1 year ago

it's amazing that in capitalism a company has to always show numbers rising like there is no physical upper boundary. The most logical and efficient economic model

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[-] hperrin@lemmy.world 39 points 1 year ago

Good. We should be using our phones for longer.

[-] Chup@feddit.de 39 points 1 year ago

I understand 'worst sales' but 'worst performance' doesn't really fit. It's in my opinion this is a fantastic performance on the market. With right to repair, longer software support, some models with replaceable batteries, we can use the phones longer and make the industry more sustainable and consumer friendly. For the last years already, the model feature upgrades were marginal and it's fine that way.

In the future, I'd hope for further technical and regulatory development in that direction, resulting in further reduced annual sales numbers.

[-] ydieb@lemm.ee 30 points 1 year ago

When the whole western society has been force fed that "we must consume else our economy will collapse", not continously outselling (and throwing away barely year old work) is bad, this is the result.

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[-] krakenx@lemmy.world 38 points 1 year ago

They doubled the price while removing core features like headphone jacks and microSD.

The people who bought phones as a status symbol ran out of money and the people who are advanced users are sticking with their old phones that are simply better until planned obsolescence forces them to buy another older model.

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[-] UFODivebomb@programming.dev 38 points 1 year ago

Have they considered releasing another hard to hold glass slab exactly like the previous one?

[-] gveltaine@lemmy.zip 30 points 1 year ago

Good. They should never have been that high anyways

[-] yournamehere@lemm.ee 27 points 1 year ago

like desktop PCs

like DVD players?

no innovation, no need for a new device

apple seems to have quit innovating and google is just a fat fuck that is so lazy their core product search has gotten shit.

nokia nokia lol

[-] fart_pickle@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago

Every major company releases the same phone year after year and the only significant change is the price. I don't mind using the same phone for few years.

[-] Zerfallen@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago

Maybe they should bring back some form-factor diversity that niche consumer segments could gravitate toward, instead of every manufacturer targeting only the largest (and blandest) portion of the pie and ignoring the rest of it. If it's not clear, I am holding out for some decent "mini-sized" Android option.

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[-] TheMightyCanuck@sh.itjust.works 26 points 1 year ago

Lmao stopped upgrading years ago...

When this 5 yo phone kicks the bucket, I'll upgrade to a 4 yo model for cheap

Literally not missing out on anything and saving a fucking bag doing it

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[-] DatzIT@lemmy.world 26 points 1 year ago

Waiting on replacement batteries to come back. Also 1k is a no way from me.

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[-] Pxtl@lemmy.ca 24 points 1 year ago

Partly because everybody's finances are stretched pretty thin, but also partly because phones got Good Enough like 6 years ago and so at this point you basically replace one when it breaks and replacement cost exceeds repair costs unless you're an enthusiast who demands the latest and greatest.... which is why the lucrously short support window for security patches on most Android devices is obscene. I know the technical reasons for them, but they're still unacceptable.

[-] set_secret@lemmy.world 23 points 1 year ago

finally some positive news.

[-] jeena@jemmy.jeena.net 23 points 1 year ago

Mine is 5 years old, a Samsung S9. Other then the shorter battery everything seems to work just fine.

[-] beeng@discuss.tchncs.de 33 points 1 year ago

Imagine if you could easily swap a new battery in. Heaven.

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[-] pineapplelover@lemm.ee 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Cause they keep making them shittier and shittier. Like I can't replace my battery like a fairphone, replace all the parts, have a microsd slot and fingerprint reader like the older phones. People complaining about size and weight. Check out the Samsung S5, what was fucking wrong with that? Worked fine and waterproof. Fucking bitchasses keep complaining about how it's not possible when it's been done for many years already.

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[-] Seytoux@lemmy.one 21 points 1 year ago

Well.. do we all need to change our perfectly fine, advanced and fast pocket computer every year just to have always the latest -> IMO No.

Good for the environment that it's a bad business year.

[-] ArchmageAzor@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

Maybe because the only "innovations" that can be made to the smartphone is new cameras and new form factors, and only one of those is being focused on

[-] flop_leash_973@lemmy.world 19 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It is amusing how cell phone companies want people to think about their products like a fridge or video game console, yet are shocked when people seem to only want to buy a new one every 5-10 years or more when the old one breaks.

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[-] Metatronz@lemmy.world 19 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Two cents on the headphone jack issue folks bring up all the time. The convenience of 3.5 mm is great and valid. Totally agree.

However, I use and own a lot of wired higher end headphones and a dongle DAC is just better audio quality than the 3.5mm jack. Let me explain.

3.5mm jacks means the phone's on board DAC is doing the work and outputting an analog stereo signal. You are stuck with whatever, typically sub-par, DAC is built into your phone. Yes, some phones have better DACs than others, but it is a challenge to sort out and is often not a priority for most manufacturers.

With type C dongle you can escape your phone's limitations and use dongles with audio features like fully balanced audio because the signal stays digital from your phone to the dongle. Personally, I'm a fan of 4.4 mm balanced connection, as most of my headphones will run balanced. This is something I could never do with 3.5mm alone.

DDHifi, XDUOO, ifi, etc makes some great 'audiophile' - dumb title but you know what I mean - DACs.

I often don't hear this side of the issue discussed.

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[-] RalphFurley@lemmy.world 18 points 1 year ago

I used to buy a new Pixel every year, but for what? Holding out on my 5 while it still works.

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[-] Alicecisnt 18 points 1 year ago

Everyone is poor from inflation and a million different subscription services and smartphone makers haven't done anything new in years so there's no point in getting a new phone unless the old one breaks.

My Samsung phones keep "mysteriously" going to shit after 18 to 22 months so I might try an iPhone when my current one shits the bed. Hopefully they will get their head out of their ass and reduce/remove the cutout.

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[-] sebinspace@lemmy.world 17 points 1 year ago

Why the fuck would I upgrade my phone every single year? Don’t get me wrong, I love the one I literally just got, but it’s my first upgrade in years. At some point, the question becomes “what the fuck else do you want these things to do”

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[-] magnus@lemmy.ahall.se 15 points 1 year ago

Phones has been fast enough for me without upgrading to new hardware the last few years.

And with a Fairphone, it is actually feasible to repair and change battery once in a while :)

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[-] OldQWERTYbastard@lemmy.world 14 points 1 year ago

Honestly, how much better can they get? I love to have the latest gadgets as much as the next guy, but I've got bills and shit too.

Still rocking my Pixel 4a.

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this post was submitted on 28 Sep 2023
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