- Apple has marked the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 as ‘vintage’
- This means there are fewer repair options should you need them
- The next step is to declare them ‘obsolete,’ but that’s not happened yet
If you’re still rocking an iPhone 7 Plus or an iPhone 8, we’ve got some bad news: Apple has just added them to its list of “vintage” products, meaning your repair options have just become a little more limited.
Apple declares a product to be vintage when the company stopped selling it more than five but less than seven years ago. Apple does this from time to time with older devices – after all, it can’t offer ongoing support for every device it's ever produced on an indefinite basis. But the news will still come as a disappointment to anyone still using one of these phones.
What does this mean in practice? Well, when Apple classifies a product as 'vintage', it cuts back on the support it will offer to owners. In theory, you’ll still be able to get one of these products repaired by Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP), but it depends on whether the parts are still available. If they aren’t, you won’t be able to get genuine components when it’s time to repair your phone.
After a product has been classed as vintage, the next step is for Apple to label it 'obsolete', and this usually occurs when more than seven years have passed since Apple last offered the device for sale. The iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 were discontinued in 2019 and 2020, respectively, which means you’ve still got another year or two until they're classed as obsolete.
Old-school charm
Launched in 2016, the iPhone 7 Plus was the larger version of the iPhone 7, and it came with water and dust resistance, a solid-state Home button, new color options, and revised antenna bands. It also controversially marked the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack once and for all.
The iPhone 8, meanwhile, was released in 2017 and came with wireless charging, True Tone technology, a better chip, and improved cameras. It launched alongside the iPhone X, which was the first all-screen iPhone and consigned the Home button to history.
This is the second time in recent months that Apple has added devices to its vintage products list. In mid-April, the iPhone 6S was marked as vintage, alongside the 2018 Mac mini. Don’t be surprised to see further products added to Apple’s list over the next year.
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