Park Soo-yeon, a 22-year-old university student in South Korea, carries two iPhones: the latest iPhone 16 and a 10-year-old iPhone 5s. While she mainly uses the latest model for everyday communication, she prefers the older one for taking photos.
“Shooting with an old iPhone feels like using a vintage film camera,” Park said. “Even though I’m taking pictures in the present, they have a nostalgic feel, which makes them feel new again.”
Like Park, many young consumers are now actively seeking out older phones, a trend driven by “young-tro” – a combination of young and retro, referring to the new wave of nostalgia among Gen Z.
Older iPhones, in particular, are experiencing a surge in popularity. The demand for the iPhone SE (1st generation), first released in 2016, has even led to the term “iPhone SE phenomenon”.