That New Phone Fever

iPhone 6: still fine.

The iPhone 6 is a perfectly fine smartphone, as we noted in July. Mine is fairly new, replaced under the AppleCare extended warranty this May.

We ought to have the discipline to hold off buying a new iPhone 8 or iPhone X until 2018. Reports on the new phones' reliability are mixed. But I'm getting that new-phone fever....

Another reason I shouldn't upgrade is because the 8 or X would be even "better" at hijacking my mind.

Not only do our phones shape our thoughts in deep and complicated ways, but the effects persist even when we aren’t using the devices. As the brain grows dependent on the technology, the research suggests, the intellect weakens.[snip]

"Mind-blowing": Apple's right again.

In an April article in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, Dr. Ward and his colleagues wrote that the “integration of smartphones into daily life” appears to cause a “brain drain” that can diminish such vital mental skills as “learning, logical reasoning, abstract thought, problem solving, and creativity.” Smartphones have become so entangled with our existence that, even when we’re not peering or pawing at them, they tug at our attention, diverting precious cognitive resources.

The effects of smartphone addiction--or just heavy use--have become worrisome to those who have designed many of its features:

many of these younger technologists are weaning themselves off their own products, sending their children to elite Silicon Valley schools where iPhones, iPads and even laptops are banned. They appear to be abiding by a Biggie Smalls lyric from their own youth about the perils of dealing crack cocaine: never get high on your own supply.

As if the iPhone wasn't engrossing enough, the new models come with souped-up augmented reality.

I shouldn't upgrade if I know what's good for myself, but why start now?