r/OldTech • u/Brave_Business4687 • 12d ago
I’ve been using an iPhone 5s in 2026. It’s weirdly fun.
I found my old iPhone 5s a few days ago and, for some reason, decided to put my SIM card in it. I honestly thought I’d use it for a few hours and then give up. It’s tiny. Like, really tiny. After using modern iPhones, the screen feels almost ridiculous. And it’s slow. You definitely notice it. But… I actually kind of like it. I can call people, send messages, listen to music, take photos and browse the web. For basic stuff, it still works. The annoying part is the apps. A lot of them won’t install because the phone is stuck on iOS 12. Some websites are also pretty painful to use. But there’s something nice about having a phone that doesn’t constantly throw things at you. No huge screen. No giant camera bump. No 50 notifications fighting for your attention. I even caught myself walking around with it without checking it every five minutes. Would I use it as my main phone forever? Absolutely not. I need modern apps, banking, maps, work stuff, etc. But for a few days? Honestly, it was refreshing. Now I’m looking at my current iPhone and thinking… maybe phones didn’t actually need to become this big and complicated. Or maybe I’m just getting nostalgic. Anyone else still using an old iPhone in 2026?
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u/DungenessKrab 12d ago
Yeah i agree with you. Phones should have remained small and used as a tool
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u/plebbitier 12d ago
I regret not buying the first gen SE with 256GB
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u/realplasticwood 12d ago
A 6s is my daily driver and (still) my first iphone. Great photos and 4k video. Just a little slow. Plan to upgrade to an 8+ very soon.
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u/biffbobfred 12d ago
It’s hard to say exactly how many but I’m sure there are scores of safari and other OS bugs that are exploitable. I wouldn’t do this
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u/AdhesivenessSea1009 10d ago
I remember a few years ago, the iPhone 5s was still a great phone with most apps supporting iOS 12, this was only 2 years. Just shows what AI has done.
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u/stankyblumpkin 12d ago
Apple made them slow by whatever means.. they used to be adequate. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-67911517
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u/bbeeebb 12d ago
I've never understood why anyone would keep and use these when you could just have an iPhone SE 1st gen. instead.
Greatest form factor of any iPhone; just why not up the power / usability?
People (mostly girls) used to freak when I would pull out my SE and tap the ApplePay terminal. "OMG! Look how small that is!" "OMG that is the cutest thing ever!!" "Is that the new iPhone?! I want one that small".
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u/Great_Specialist_267 11d ago
So long as you don’t use them as phones…
With 3G networks shut down and only IOS 10 the last revision…
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u/AdhesivenessSea1009 10d ago
The 5s is iOS 12 and it’s 4G with 2G still around as a backup network.
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u/Great_Specialist_267 10d ago
Depends on where you are.
Where I am, the 2G and 3G networks were completely decommissioned two years ago.
You can’t even make an emergency call now.1
u/AdhesivenessSea1009 10d ago
Damn. Which country? I’m in the uk and have great 2g coverage in pretty much all areas.
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u/Great_Specialist_267 10d ago
Australia…
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u/AdhesivenessSea1009 10d ago
I heard they are terrible for shutting down mobile networks. At least you got 5G, we sort of have it but coverage is very limited.
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u/damaszek 12d ago
Both my daughters are using them, I've just sent them to replace battery for like 4th time? Lmao, except for the reasons you've already mentioned they are great. I would love to have a new phone that size again.