[Korean Society] Why Do People in Their 40s Use iPhones? Pann Users Push Back on Generational Assumptions

A viral social media post asking why people in their 40s still use iPhones has sparked a wider discussion on Nate Pann about age, smartphone habits, and generational perceptions.

The original post asked why people in their 40s use iPhones, noting that the poster had seen more people switch to Samsung Galaxy phones as they got older. They wondered whether people continued using iPhones because of the brand’s image or because they genuinely found them more convenient. 

One response quickly drew attention for its blunt reply: “I’ve been using it since you were crawling around.” 

The discussion continued on Nate Pann, where several users in their 40s and 50s said they had started using iPhones years ago and simply never had a reason to switch. Some said they had become accustomed to Apple’s interface and apps, while others pushed back against the idea that using an iPhone at their age was an attempt to appear younger. 

Other commenters turned the generational framing around, pointing out that people who are now in their 40s were already adults when smartphones first became popular and arguing that younger users were treating technology they had grown up with as something belonging exclusively to their own generation.

Netizen Reactions

The sampled Nate Pann comments ranged from lengthy explanations of why older users remained with iPhones to sarcastic responses questioning why smartphone choice should be tied to age in the first place.

1. There was a transition period when smartphones first started coming out in Korea—probably before you were even born ㅋㅋ I started out with an iPhone back then. At one point I really wanted to try the Note, so I switched to Android, but it was too difficult and the interface felt cluttered, so I switched back to iPhone after just a week. I’ve been using iPhones ever since, and the first digit of my age has changed twice now... Maybe it’s not that the iPhone is amazing, but just that it was how I got into smartphones and it’s what I’m used to. Am I not allowed to use an iPhone in my 50s?? ㅋㅋ These days I kind of want to try that Z Fold thing, but I don’t have confidence that I could adjust to Android... So I’m thinking about keeping my iPhone and trying an Android on the side. For someone in their mid-50s like me, Android is just too difficult and inconvenient ㅋㅋ

2. I was in my 20s when the iPhone came out, so I quickly embraced that new culture. Then I went through my 30s and 40s using it, and now switching to Galaxy would mean having to learn something new all over again. I’m at an age where that just feels like a hassle. I’ve used iPhones since the very first model. At this point, it would also feel like a waste to abandon all the apps I’ve bought over the years, and because I’ve only ever used iPhones, Galaxy actually feels more inconvenient to me. And once you reach this age, the phone model itself isn’t that important. Younger people talk about it so much because it’s a bigger part of their lives ㅎㅎ Now that I’m in my 40s, I just think, “Well, they’re young and have plenty of energy to spend on things like that.”

3. I’ve just kept using what I’ve always used. Do I really need a reason? People keep going on about “Young Forties” and all that, but if you’ve worn Nike or Adidas since you were young, you’ll still wear them after 50. Why does there need to be some deep reason? ㅋㅋ

4. People in their 40s were using both Pann and iPhones from the beginning. You guys are the ones copying us.

5. When the iPhone first came out and wasn’t officially available in Korea, the people who are now in their 50s and late 40s were buying them overseas, importing them directly, modifying them, and using them. People were using them back when there weren’t even Korean-language apps. Early iPhones barely had any useful apps either. These are people who have been using them since then. Maybe because people keep saying “Young Forties use iPhones,” younger people got the impression that people in their 40s were copying them and trying to look young? I sometimes see kids on Pann complaining about why there are so many people in their 40s and 50s here. People in their 40s and 50s are the ones who started posting on Pann in the first place. You guys showed up 10 or 20 years later and ruined the vibe. It used to be nice here.

6. If you don’t even know... the commenter is saying the iPhone came first and Galaxy followed later. A lot of people started their smartphone life with an iPhone. Meanwhile, younger kids often started with cheaper Android phones, and if they did use an iPhone, sometimes it was one handed down from their parents.

7. This question is seriously so absurd ㅋㅋㅋㅋ — an iPhone user in their 40s.

8. You little punks... You had to use the 3G model to understand... That thing was insanely cool back then... Do you even have the money to buy one?? This is hilarious ㅋㅋ

9. Are these people crazy? What the hell are these kids saying to people who’ve been using iPhones all along since their 20s?

10. This just proves there really are a lot of people in their 40s here ㅎㅎ

Source: Nate Pann