Smartphone users in the US have been using the same devices for the longest time

At the end of 2023, enterprises continued to face challenging conditions, such as the economic slowdown and cost of living crises, which resulted in the smartphone returns market being the highest in the industry.

In its latest quarterly analysis of the smartphone returns market, Assurant found that by the end of the first quarter of 2024, U.S. consumers were holding on to their devices longer than before, with the average age at replacement reaching an all-time high.

The latest quarterly Mobile Commerce and Upgrades Industry Trends Report Assurant found that a total of $874 million was refunded to U.S. consumers through mobile device trade-in programs in the first quarter of 2024, with the average device age at trade-in at an all-time high of 3.64 years.

Using market data and the Device IQ analytics platform, the report highlights the most popular smartphones returned through trade-in and upgrade programs, average smartphone trade-in value, and Apple Watch trade-in trends.

As has been the case for many years, Apple devices were the most frequently sold device, and variants of the iPhone 12 – the company’s first 5G-enabled device – accounted for almost half of the five most frequently replaced devices through software upgrades and upgrades in the last two quarters (39%). and 42% retrospectively).

Assurant noted that after launch in October 2020, consumers upgrading these devices to newer models appeared to have contributed to an increase in the average age of the devices.

The report highlights that the current average age of devices is 3.64 years, compared to 3.45 years in the fourth quarter of 2023. Additionally, the average value of smartphones in trade has decreased over the last three months, from $147 in the fourth quarter of 2023 to $110 in Q1 2024.

Despite launching in 2019, iPhone 11 remained the most purchased mobile device for the eighth quarter in a row thanks to trade-in and upgrade programs and was the only 4G device in the top five. The remaining top five devices, all 5G, are the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro Max, iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Max.

In terms of other platforms, Samsung’s leading device remains the Galaxy S21. The average trade-in value for Apple’s newest smart watch, the Ultra 2, reached $317 in the first quarter.

Commenting on the trends revealed by the survey, Rebekah Griffiths, vice president of product and device lifecycle solutions at Assurant, said: “Following a record high amount of money returned to consumers in the fourth quarter of last year, it is typical of the first quarter to see a decline in post-peak season replacements shopping.

“With inflation driving up the cost of living around the world, interchange is an important tool for OEMs, carriers, retailers and MSOs to encourage consumers to upgrade their devices and take advantage of newer network capabilities. It also reduces the number of devices hidden in drawers or, worse, ending up in landfills.”