Sorry, but your iPhone 5 has become obsolete

During the wave of information surrounding the new iPad Pro and the new MacBook Air, Apple has quietly added the iPhone 5 to its list of "vintage and obsolete products" in the United States. It is there, alongside the Apple III, the Newton MessagePad and the first four generations of iPhone, as something that Apple has officially neither repaired nor updated. The iPhone 5 is actually dead in America and the rest of Apple's small hands are not far behind.

It is not a surprise. Apple officially defines vintage products as those that have not been manufactured for five to seven years. The company abandoned the iPhone 5 in 2013, just after announcing the iPhone 5C, which was actually the same device in a different case and which was not yet obsolete. It would seem that the iPhone 5 is not yet dead globally, Apple has not wanted to add it to its list of vintage and obsolete products around the world. Nevertheless, it is only a matter of time.

The iPhone 5 also leaves behind the iPhone 5 and the iPhone SE, somehow. In fact, Apple has stopped the iPhone 5S in 2016, when the iPhone SE came out. But in September, Apple removed the iPhone SE from its online store, the first symptom of its imminent demise. This means that the thinner case and the 4-inch screen size are almost definitely doomed to failure in the iPhone design. To stay, the iPhone 7 4.7 inches wider, that Apple still sells, as well as larger devices like the iPhone XS Max and its 6.5-inch hulk screen. This is bad news for people with small hands, who loved the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 4 before, because they could actually use stupid things.

None of this means that the iPhone 5 was Apple's biggest phone. The unit itself was prone to scratches and scratches, its blue-black anodized aluminum case feeling a little ugly. In addition, the iPhone 5 does not support iOS 11 or iOS 12, and some rumors have even circulated that earlier versions of iOS 10 would also remove this support. It also only had 1GB of RAM, which now seems hilariously underpowered compared to the 4GB RAM of the iPhone XS.

Yet this form factor is something that people will miss. Apple has not yet supported the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPhone SE. But it's almost as if a family of four had just lost their older brother and the Grim Reaper was coming for them. When they die, the lean iPhones and small screens will be gone. Unless, of course, Apple decides to make an iPhone Mini, which would be hilarious and probably welcomed.