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Original poster

Anyone with an Iphone 5S? I have some questions.

44 replies

Pinkkahori · 04/12/2018 17:21

My Dd has wanted a phone for ages and we've agreed she can have one for Christmas. She desperately wants an Iphone.
I've had a look and I got a reconditioned 5s for a reasonable price. Money is tight and I also don't think kids need top of the range tech. When I mentioned it to her she was really pleased.
Now some of the kids in her class have been telling her it's a rubbish phone, the messaging doesn't work and so on.
Is there any truth in it?
She is so easily led and their is one girl in particular who seems to love putting Dd down.
I don't really have the budget for anything newer but I don't want to waste money on something that doesn't work properly.

OP posts:
empmalswa · 04/12/2018 17:23

Honestly? It will probably become useless in less than a year. It's the oldest iPhone to run ios12 so it's very likely that it won't be supported by the next software update Apple release.

Hohocabbage · 04/12/2018 17:25

Could you get an 5SE instead, what is your budget? Ive just upgraded from a 5S and it was fine but then i dont have the type of social life where the type of phone you have gets dissected! I find music magpie good for reconditioned ones.

incallthebloodytime · 04/12/2018 17:30

Get a 5SE

Mine has been fine...

empmalswa · 04/12/2018 17:30

There isn't a 5SE.

There is a 5S and an SE.

empmalswa · 04/12/2018 17:30

And yes the SE is a much better phone, because it's essentially a 6 in the case of a 5.

Original poster
Pinkkahori · 04/12/2018 17:36

I paid €150 for the 5S. We're not in the UK.

OP posts:
ParisNext · 04/12/2018 17:36

I second the advice to get an SE. It’s a future proof phone which looks good but still basic enough to not be too expensive. The 5 series now is a false economy. Look at John Lewis for the SE, you get an extra year’s warranty and they will price match.

uncomfortablydumb53 · 04/12/2018 22:01

I also recommend the SE

ThatOneHurt · 04/12/2018 23:27

I know the 5 is obsolete now, you can't add apps or update it in anyway.

So the 5S won't be far behind (5 has been obsolete for some time now). For that reason alone it will not be worth getting.

GreenTulips · 04/12/2018 23:30

I have an 5C messages work fine so does the internet and everything else

Little slow and battery is going - so you shouldn't have ny issues

Make sure you have a SIM card ready for Christmas Day otherwise she can't start it

GreenTulips · 04/12/2018 23:31

Oh and write down all passwords etc for when she forgets

AtSea1979 · 04/12/2018 23:34

It’ll be absolutely fine. You won’t be able to update it after a while but i’ve got DD one for Xmas and it’ll do her for a year and then next Xmas i’ll get her a 6 and so on.

SpoonBlender · 04/12/2018 23:43

There's no truth in the messaging not working, that's nonsense. The girls are being little shits, as you say they're just putting your DD down.

An iPhone 5s runs iOS12, the current version, without any issues. It might fall off the supported list in a year or two, but take that as it comes. If it starts powering off by surprise it'll need a new battery, won't cost much - £25 or so from any phone mender.

FannyFifer · 04/12/2018 23:45

My DH still has a 5s, he can't add any new versions of apps now. Still works, just.
Think u paid over the odds for it though, can get them for about £80.

Hohocabbage · 04/12/2018 23:45

Sorry i didnt see you had already got the phone. I didnt pay more than that (if my conversion is correct) for my SE. But, assuming you can't change it just remember it's an iphone! It will, for now, do whatever you want and will give your dd access to snapchat, texting, whatsapp etc. By the time it is obsolete she would probably have broken it anyway (thinks of child I know - not mine! - who has smashed an iphone x.)

Hohocabbage · 04/12/2018 23:47

Yeah my 5S updated, would run out of memory but I never found an app i couldn't download. There will always be someone with a newer phone.

tabulahrasa · 04/12/2018 23:53

I’ve got a 5S and a 6.... if they weren’t different sizes I wouldn’t notice a difference tbh, they run the same apps and do all the phone stuff like messaging...

Original poster
Pinkkahori · 04/12/2018 23:55

Thanks everyone. I looked at the SE. It's outside our budget. Not in the UK and phones are definitely more expensive here.
There is a huge jump in price from the 5S to the 6.
She is really hung up on the messaging so if that works and she can have a couple of games I think it will be fine.

OP posts:
SpoonBlender · 04/12/2018 23:59

The messaging definitely works. Some of my team at work still have a 5s and we use Apple messaging constantly.

ThatOneHurt · 05/12/2018 08:10

Ah sounds like the 5S is also obsolete now too.

Which is annoying because my son has the 6 which means that's next. Confused

CandyAppleRed · 05/12/2018 08:18

The 5s is absolutely fine OP

empmalswa · 05/12/2018 08:35

It's fine now yes, but in a few months it's likely the phone will not be supported by the newest software update. Not much point in stretching a budget as far as you and buying something that's only going to work for a short amount of time.

bullyingadvice2017 · 05/12/2018 08:39

My daughter 11 and me both have the 5s . It's fine she tells me some kids have the latest phone and they might have.
They probably also have 80£ trainers and all the rest. Make sure your daughter is past worrying about having the latest model. It's just stuff and there will always be materialistic kids and adults around.

LovesLaboursLost · 05/12/2018 08:42

The 5s is fine. I gave my old one to my son and he has no problems with messaging or downloading apps.

DianaT1969 · 05/12/2018 08:49

Is she set on getting an Apple? Motorola G6 is known as the best value smartphone. I just got the g6 plus, having only ever used apple before - latest was an iphone 6 plus - and am really pleased with it.

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