Over time, Apple labels its older products as “obsolete” or “vintage”, reflecting changes in how much support it offers for them – and it’s now the turn of the iPhone 5S, launched in September 2013, to get the obsolete badge stuck on it.
As spotted by MacRumors, the change was made to Apple’s official support page for older hardware. Obsolete products, which now include the iPhone 5S, are products that Apple stopped selling seven or more years ago.
“Apple discontinues all hardware service for obsolete products, and service providers cannot order parts for obsolete products,” Apple explains. In other words, Apple won’t fix your device, and third-party repair shops are going to struggle too.
The last major software update the iPhone 5S got was iOS 12, launched in 2018. As for the iPhone 5C, launched alongside the iPhone 5S in 2013, it was already on Apple’s list of obsolete products, so there’s no change there.
More changes
Of course, the iPhone 5S was at the cutting edge of technology when it first appeared. It was the first smartphone to use a 64-bit processor (the Apple A7), and it introduced the Touch ID fingerprint authentication system to the iPhone.
If you’re still rocking an iPhone 5S, it might be time to consider upgrading to one of the best iPhones available now: you’re going to notice a serious jump in terms of the phone’s polish and performance, and you’ll get the latest iOS 17 software too.
There are a couple of other changes to Apple’s list here: both the sixth-generation iPod touch launched in 2015 and the late 2015 iMac with a 21.5-inch, 4K display are now marked as vintage (so they haven’t been sold by Apple for more than five years).
Apple and its authorized partners will still offer repairs on vintage products, but that’s subject to “parts availability” – so if the replacement part you need is no longer available, you’re probably not going to be able to get your device fixed.
