With Amazon’s Prime Day beginning today and Apple’s World Wide Developer’s Conference over a month ago, one might have questions about what Apple products one can safely buy and which produces to wait until Apple’s traditional Fall Announcements. To quote Wall Street Journal reporter, Joanna Stern:

Never double dip a chip,
Never talk on speakerphone in public,
Never buy an iPhone in the summer.

The MacRumors website has an excellent Buyer’s Guide page with an easy to follow color-coded tabbed chart showing which products are safe to buy, which products are neutral, which products get a caution warning and which products one should not buy. The warning statuses are based on how recently the specific products were updated and if they are due for an update soon (click on the image to go to that page of the guide):

https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#ios
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#ios
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#mac
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#mac
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#music
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#music
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#other
https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#other

Based on this chart it’s safe to buy the just updated 15” MacBook Air, Mac mini, Mac Studio and Mac Pro, HomePod and AirPods Pro. Products to NOT BUY are the iPhone 14 Pro, 13” MacBook Pro and the iMac, all are due for an update. And all of the rest of the products are either neutral or purchase with caution, noting that their update status is unknown.

Apple doesn’t always follow a yearly product update cycle and some updates are more noteworthy than others. It’s also been my experience that my Apple products have a longer potential life-cycle and that I can skip updates unless there is something specific that I want with the newer product. The camera system on the iPhones has often been the driver for getting the newer version. The next iPhone is also rumored to switch away from the Lightning connector to the USB-C connector, which fans of USB-C will appreciate. I have a 13 Pro Max and I don’t think that the switch to USB-C will be enough for me to give Apple more of my money. 

I had a friend go to his phone store right after the announcement of the new iPhones and buy last year’s model and that seemed odd to me. The one that he purchased had its price knocked down a bit, but was it enough for him to pay good money for last year’s features? When I bought my first iPhone in 2007, it wasn’t my first “smartphone” but it felt significantly more expensive than the Palm Treo that I’d previously purchased. So, I’ve long since abandoned the notion that this new device isn’t going to put a serious hit on my bank account. I’m making the purchase because I want that new thing that wasn’t available last year, so I can’t imagine getting talked down to considering last year’s model, just to save a few bucks. My friend did not make his purchase in an Apple Store, so I’m guessing that he might have been influenced by the carrier store’s salesman. 

So, be careful out there. I’ve been known to succumb to a little shopping-therapy, so as I’m clicking away at the different “deals” on Amazon I have to remind myself that I don’t actually have a job right now and if anything I should be downsizing, not adding to my stuff. Yikes. 

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