Heisen
Herald
Hello folks,
Here are my findings about the slow death of an iPhone, based on my iPhone 6S 64GB bought in 2015 and still going.
The phone is in service, had gone through multiple users in the family, the phone still turns on, runs smoothly, Home button and silent switch are giving problem intermittently but with assisted touch feature everything works, and it gets through a day. But here’s what no longer works after almost 10 years and why that matters:
Their are some exceptions like ICICI Bank, which I’ll explain shortly.
All UPI apps now show this message
Which, of course, isn’t possible on a device this old.
My theory?
These guidelines indirectly killed banking apps too because most of them have UPI capability.
Instead of maintaining two versions (one with UPI and one without), banks likely chose to discontinue support entirely.
ICICI, however, still supports an app version without UPI, which is why it still works.
But instead of letting users download an older compatible version, they've disabled that option.
(App developers can choose whether to allow older versions OpenAI chose not to.)
Deepseek works though.
YouTube gives you the option to download an older compatible version.
When you try to install it, the App Store says:
However, WhatsApp recently dropped support for devices older than the 6S.
So I think you could say that these general popular social apps will easily work for 10 years after the phone is launched.
iPhones older than 6S still works for texting and FaceTime between iOS users.
So if all else fails, Apple’s own ecosystem still has your back.
It’s funny we often worry about how many years of software updates a phone gets.
But in the end, it wasn’t Apple/Android that pulled the plug.
That was the hardest blow.
Especially if someone is relying on just one phone for everything.
It’s kind of sad, honestly.
Here are my findings about the slow death of an iPhone, based on my iPhone 6S 64GB bought in 2015 and still going.
The phone is in service, had gone through multiple users in the family, the phone still turns on, runs smoothly, Home button and silent switch are giving problem intermittently but with assisted touch feature everything works, and it gets through a day. But here’s what no longer works after almost 10 years and why that matters:
1. Banking Apps Stopped Working
Most banking apps just stopped working.Their are some exceptions like ICICI Bank, which I’ll explain shortly.
2. UPI No Longer Works
Due to government guidelines, UPI apps no longer support UPI registration on older iOS versions (around 5–6 years old or more) and it's the same on android.All UPI apps now show this message
Which, of course, isn’t possible on a device this old.
My theory?
These guidelines indirectly killed banking apps too because most of them have UPI capability.
Instead of maintaining two versions (one with UPI and one without), banks likely chose to discontinue support entirely.
ICICI, however, still supports an app version without UPI, which is why it still works.
3. Some Apps Don't Install
OpenAI’s ChatGPT app now requires iOS 16 or 17.But instead of letting users download an older compatible version, they've disabled that option.
(App developers can choose whether to allow older versions OpenAI chose not to.)
Deepseek works though.
4. YouTube Still Works
The latest YouTube app requires newer iOS too, but here’s the difference:YouTube gives you the option to download an older compatible version.
When you try to install it, the App Store says:
5. Social Apps (Mostly) Still Alive
Apps like Instagram and WhatsApp still work fine.However, WhatsApp recently dropped support for devices older than the 6S.
So I think you could say that these general popular social apps will easily work for 10 years after the phone is launched.
6. iMessage Never Dies
Even if your other apps stop working, iMessage keeps going.iPhones older than 6S still works for texting and FaceTime between iOS users.
So if all else fails, Apple’s own ecosystem still has your back.
Final Thoughts
It’s funny we often worry about how many years of software updates a phone gets.
But in the end, it wasn’t Apple/Android that pulled the plug.
That was the hardest blow.
Especially if someone is relying on just one phone for everything.
It’s kind of sad, honestly.
