Here’s why your old cellphone may be obsolete in 2022

A lot of older cellphones, including the iPhone 5, iPhone 5S and Samsung Galaxy S4, will become obsolete in 2022 as mobile providers make the switch to 5G networks. The Federal Communications Commission is warning consumers they may not be able to send text messages, access the internet, or make phone calls, including to 911, if they have models that are several years old. According to the FCC, 3G networks could be impacted as early as January 1, 2022. The agency provided a timeline of when carriers will complete shutting down their 3G networks and recommended customers contact their mobile provider for more information about their 3G retirement plan. Carriers may be offering discounted or free upgrades, and some devices may only require a software update. “People who have access to the internet I think take it for granted and kind of assume everybody has access,” said Colin Rhinesmith [Senior Faculty Research Fellow at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society], an assistant professor at the School of Library and Information Science at Simmons University. “There’s the cost of internet access, which is expensive, but there’s also—and people forget—the cost of devices,” Rhinesmith said. “The fact that we’re potentially asking folks to invest in new technology--on top of the fact that the internet is already expensive--can be challenging.”