Do they? Anecdotally I can only think of a tiny handful of people I've known that buy the latest model every year. Most people I know used to buy every 2 years when smartphones first came out but now it seems like most people I know buy a new phone probably average 3 years or longer.

I have to say this really surprises me, smartphones now are so good that you could easily keep one for 2 years or more and not notice the difference.

My personal cycle is about 4 years, and I do my best to take care of the battery so that I don't even have to replace that during that time.

> Even those buying every other year are few.

I think this is true but for the opposite reason you do. The number is few because most people upgrade _less_ often, not more.