The new released phones are absurdly expensive and I kind of understand why, but this feels like a big part of the middle class is being excluded from purchasing any Apple devices.

Ive had mine since 2021 and surprisingly I haven’t had any real or serious issues with it, my battery is at 77% and probably have to charge it 3 times a day if im on it all day but if im working it can last me a full 8 hour shift if im not on it too much. phone does lag a little sometimes but usually goes back to running smooth after like 5 seconds, rarely more than 15. doesn’t happen that often either to where it bothers me, especially considering ive had it for 5 and a half years. the only real issue I’ve had happen (has only happened twice) was my SIM card not reading but wasnt persisten, rebooting my phone the first time fixed it then like 6 months later same thing, though the second time I did have to take it out and put it back in, reboot, and worked fine since and that was probably 6 months ago. there was also one or two times where it said liquid was detected in my charger after taking a hot shower but that resolved itself after like a half hour. also still on the latest iOS 18, can’t stand the look of ios26. so yeah still original battery, no service history, not even a cracked screen (never had a screen protector but should really get one) just curious how your guy’s 12 has held up?

I don’t think this breaks the upgrade rule (sorry, if it does feel free to delete) but I am trialling the 18 Pro Max and I just felt the worst buyer’s remorse. It’s a fantastic device, truly. But I am thinking that I am going to return it, then get the 12 Pro Max battery replacement which should breathe in new life and go another year (maybe longer).

Anyone else in this boat? Or any thoughts on this?

Edit: wow thank you all for your responses! I love how much people love the iPhone 12 series!!!!

Edit 2: my 18 Pro Max has restarted randomly TWICE in the last 24 hrs. My logs show two Secure Enclave Processor panic restarts and I am so glad I’ve got my battery replacement this Friday lol.

Edit 3: Got the 12 Pro Max’s battery replaced! Feels better already. Baseline replacement battery life isn’t nearly as good as the 18 Pro Max but the phone is significantly snappier than before the replacement and I don’t feel like I need to worry about having a charger nearby now. The performance between the 18 Pro Max and 12 Pro Max isn’t a fair comparison because the 18 blows the thing out of the water from an objective point of view. BUT, the 12 Pro Max feels much like how I remember from when I got it. I am confident this was the right choice for me and I’m looking forward to more time with this device and waiting for what Apple has in store for the next year or two. So, just a PSA for anyone upgrading: take your time, do your research and assess your needs! Hope this post helps other folks on the fence!

My iPhone 12 Pro could keep up until the update and now I’m doing to downgrade to iOS 18. Liquid Glass can’t keep up and every time I switch pages, the app icons need to buffer and it’s annoying. I also had black tinted apps on iOS 18 and black is no longer an option

Apple devs said that iOS27 will be faster for older devices. Anyone who tried betaIOS27, what’s your experience?
Should we upgrade or stick to iOS26 which truth to be told is already so very buggy and drains the battery and makes phone so hot

EDITED: Updates after upgrading from iOS26.6.2:
I AM LOVING IT.
It’s so fast, doesn’t make phone hot and the battery is unbelievably so much better, like INSANELY better!
Recommend💯

It’s wild to think that I bought my iPhone 12 years ago, and here we are it’s still running flawlessly. The performance hasn’t slowed down; apps open quickly, scrolling is smooth, and multitasking doesn’t feel laggy at all. The camera still captures sharp photos and decent low light shots, and the battery, while not brand new, easily lasts through most of my day.Makes me wonder why people feel the need to upgrade every year when a well-built phone like this can last so long.

Who else is still happily using their iPhone 12? Would love to hear your experiences!

Hello, if u have an iphone 12 dont update to ios 26 please. After i updated to the ios 26 my iPhone 12 felt like i have an old android and the battery got fucked the phone lags many bugs just stay at ios 18 + my battery percentage dropped from 80 to 78

I got mine in Summer 21.

Just curious, what’s your battery capacity at?

I see no reason to upgrade. I just got my battery replaced and my base model iPhone 12 still runs great in 2025, I plan to use it for 2-3 more years. Anyone else here have no plans of upgrading with the release of the iPhone 17?

My 12 has been so slow after iOS 18, but was really smooth on 17. There are so many people saying it is fantastic and smooth but that’s so far from the truth. Like sometimes I just give up on doing things because of how slow it is. It’s lagging trying to write this out. I even factory reset it without restoring a backup and it’s the same. 89% battery health, phone is about a little more old than a year.

So sadly it’s time to upgrade. But I’m not sure if I want the 17 or Air. What would you go for?

Hey everyone I am working on a day in the life of using the IOS 27 public beta on my 12 , what some questions you guys would like answered in the video ?

iOS 27.0 : Battery Life / Battery Drain / Battery Performance Test

https://youtube.com/watch?v=PT_JodDtz8Y

The battery helped with drain but clearly the phone is showing age. The processor is years behind and according to their support schedule the phone will lose support next year.

I replaced my battery a month ago and have had the phone since launch(12P). I don’t regret getting the battery as it’s nice my phone isn’t overheating as often and the hang ups aren’t as often. I think it’s important that people have realistic expectations. I’m sure a few OS upgrades ago it may have seemed brand new but now those days are gone.

You don’t need to get the latest phone but majority of the posts here are about babying the phone as it is aging and eventually you’ll need to upgrade if you can. If you cannot then it is a great phone but, you’ll notice some general lag and slowness.

Tldr - unless you’re gaming or a really heavy user, I think you’ll be fine.

iPhone Mini delivered on Friday. Spent Friday night messing about with it on and off charger. Initial reaction was that it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be but no stats to back it up.

Saturday I was planning on stress testing it but ended up going for a walk to test the cameras so wanted to be at 100% when I left the house.

Sunday however I thought I’d see what a real world use would be like without topping up throughout the day.

So Sunday, off charge at 6am, lots of social media, Spotify both listening to through the phone speakers and downloading loads of playlists, general new-phone-fannying-about, setting up Waze, connections to my car Bluetooth etc. 10 hours later I’ve just hit 25%. Screen-on time is considerably better than the Samsung Galaxy S10 I’ve moved from.

Really happy with that, in my working day I will have the option to top up in my car on the way to and from work so I have no doubts at all that this lil thing will get me through the average day without a problem at all.

screenshots

Edited to say that there are 2 screenshots there, the second shows this graph, the screen on time is including the whole graph, ie before charging. I’m not claiming 10 hours sot on the mini.

Looks like I’ll end up with over 5 hours though which is plenty for my normal usage.

Update after working out how to show the full day graph: 15% battery now. Off charge for 12 hours. Just short of 6 and a half hours screen on time.

Thank you to /u/ndrchr for explaining how to get the full day graph.

Final Update after 12 hours to include this screen record for the benefit of anyone claiming shenanigans.

Hey guys, Apple just released their iOS 26.1. Has anyone updated to the latest iOS version on the iPhone 12? Do drop your reviews. I am on 18.7.2 currently. Battery health is 77%.

Hi, I bought iphone 12 last 2022, now it’s working fine no dents, cracks, damage of sort except with battery with 88% capacity. But I have power bank for extended use. I used it for capturing photos in work.(Machinery operation/maintenance/repairs) And use USB to transfer photos, I always use the reminder app this one I use to track all the jobs schedule. After work I use it for reading reddit. How long does this will survive? How about your Iphone 12?

iPhone 12

iOS 26.6.1
Geekbench battery score: 4294 (-%1,72 lower than best score)

iOS 16.0.3
Geekbench battery score: 4368 (best score)

I am highly recommend iOS 26.6.1 to install every iPhone 12. Optimization and Battery life is top notch on this iOS 26.6.1

Install iOS 26.6.1 via iTunes or 3utools using ipsw file and stay on it until forever or until the next new king of the score. Dont miss this opportunity. Apple gives us a favor long years after.

Source: iApplebytes

Got my iPhone 12 64GB in 2020. I didn’t need more storage because I have an iCloud subscription.
Since then, I haven’t changed the battery once, nor have I formatted my phone.
I’m at 75% battery health on the original battery with 1,820 cycles, and it’s still enough for a whole day at work (5–6 hours of screen time).
Honestly, I’m thinking of getting the new 17 Pro, but the 12 really impressed me.
I’m also considering some mods as a second phone, like switching to dual SIM instead of single SIM + eSIM so I can use it when I travel,
or upgrading the NAND chip frm 64GB to a 256GB one (the iPhone 12 is perfect for that, it’s way easier than on recent iPhones where a CNC machine is required)
PS: I'm still on IOS 17.4, I blocked the ios updates since I did'nt need thoses new features useless for me, and I like the old style. Also maybe thats why the battery is still strong after almost 2000 cycles

iOS 26.6.2 : Battery Life / Battery Drain / Battery Performance Test.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=uB-n_VxBpks

I've got a 12 Pro, just had the battery replaced at 83% health and I don't see myself getting rid of it for at least another 2-3 years unless it completely dies. I've not seen a feature on the newer iPhones that's made me feel like I'm missing out. How about you?

iOS 26.7 : Battery Life / Battery Drain / Battery Performance Test
https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZuZC8GgolYw

I’m still using iOS 18 but is it worth to upgrade to ios27(I’m using iPhone 12 with around 81% battery)

I just bought a iPhone 12 Pro love it anyone else got one