I have two phones that I use regularly. An iPhone 13 mini (my personal phone) and an old Samsung Galaxy S7 (my work phone).
I’ve also got two old “feature” phones from years ago. They are in boxes, with their batteries removed and haven’t been turned on for a very long time:
In the past, I also owned two iPhones (4S and 6+), but they were traded in for discounts on their replacements, so I no longer own them.
The iPhone SE and iPhone 6s I do plug in and use fairly regularly. The iPhone 6s battery is basically worthless at this point, so I have to use it with an external battery pack attached, and even that’s not sufficient when it’s cold out. (We have winter races.) The iPhone SE is pretty reasonable.
OK, now you’ve made me look. I apparently have five iPhones and an iPod touch (upper left) in the closet.
Only one is labeled—an iPhone 6, apparently with touch disease (lower right). I’m guessing that the top middle one is an iPhone 3G since it’s curvy on the back, and the top right is an iPhone 5. The bottom left and middle are nearly identical, so maybe an iPhone 5 and 5s?
I haven’t tried to turn any of them on in years. But boy, the iPhone 5 and 5s feel really good in the hand.
I also have a original iPad mounted in the kitchen that does basically nothing (occasionally I run the Electric Sheep screensaver app on it), but because it has stayed plugged in, it works fine and doesn’t even lose much battery if I unplug it to use the charger’s port for something else for a few days.
All of our old iPads from the original on are still in some form of use, distributed far and wide at this point.
Even though I tend to hold onto old hardware longer than most, I admit I’m a little surprised at how many people have very old phones that haven’t been powered on in years. Unless they are of particular historic value, they really aren’t worth anything as trade-ins or for resale, and their batteries can present legitimate fire dangers.
If you have old, non-functional phones or other electronics, it’s as good of a time as any to get them together and take them to your local recycling center.
Note that many stores, such as Staples in the US, have incentive programs where you get rewards points for recycling old tech (though you typically only get credit for one device a month at Staples). It may not be a lot of money, but if you recycle a devices periodically, you can save a few bucks here and there.
Just a heads-up, the iPhone 7 was discontinued during September 2019 and is currently in Vintage support status by Apple and will almost certainly move into Obsolete status during September 2026. Once an Apple product moves to Obsolete status Apple ceases to stock repair parts. So the next 5–6 months will be your last opportunity to have Apple install a fresh battery.
The iOS 15.8.7 update released March 11 could be the last for iPhone 7, and once it reaches Obsolete status this fall the update window almost certainly closes forever.
If you would like to get a slightly newer phone that is still in Supported status but limited to running iOS 18.x the iPhone XR is your only option. This model would likely provide a couple more years of parts and repair support along with trailing-edge security updates similar to what you’ve been living with on your iPhone 7. The XR does not support 5G mobile service, only 4G–LTE like iPhone 7, but it has FaceID, eSIM, larger battery and a few colors beside black or silver.
The iPhone 11 and newer can all run iOS 26.x, so finding a used/refurbished one with iOS 18 could be challenging. iPhone 12 is the start point for 5G mobile support.
My active phone count is three.
There might be an iPhone 5 lost in a drawer or bin—obviously not in use!
Thanks for this: exactly the info I needed.
My actual phone is an iPhone SE third generation. When I got that, the second generation one got relegated to audiobook use. I have innumerable older phones cluttering up drawers, including an original iPhone.
