Do you remember the iPhone 4? Introduced to the world by former Apple CEO Steve Jobs, it marked a drastic departure in smartphone design, offering a fine balance of premium materials and advanced tech. It was also the iPhone that made Steve Jobs tell the world that they are holding their iPhone wrong (the Antennagate controversy, which disrupted the phone’s cellular reception when covered by the user’s hand).
That iPhone, one of the most controversial iPhones, is now back in trend, and people are ending up spending hundreds of dollars on older examples. You can thank TikTok for giving the iPhone 4 a lot more attention after all these years.
Refurbished units of the iPhone 4 are flying off the shelves on platforms like eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and specialised vintage tech stores. The comeback, driven by a wave of retro nostalgia and TikTok-driven “Y2K” aesthetics, has turned the 15-year-old device into a quirky collector’s item and a statement piece for Gen Z users embracing early 2010s design.
iPhone 4 witnesses TikTok fever in 2026
The iPhone 4, famous for its groundbreaking glass-and-stainless-steel design, 3.5-inch Retina display, and the introduction of the front-facing camera for FaceTime, originally sold over 100 million units worldwide. In recent months, demand for well-preserved units has surged, with mint-condition models now fetching prices between $150–$400 on secondary markets, sometimes higher than their original retail price when adjusted for inflation.
Obviously, social media has played a major role in the resurgence. Viral TikTok videos showing users “downgrading” to the iPhone 4 for a simpler, distraction-free experience have garnered millions of views, with captions like “back to when phones were just phones” and “iPhone 4 aesthetic hits different.” The phone’s distinctive flat glass back, aluminum band, and compact form factor have become symbols of retro minimalism in 2026’s fast-paced smartphone era.
Security experts advise against going back to iPhone 4
While the iPhone 4’s comeback is a fun trend, cybersecurity experts are sounding serious alarms about using the device in 2026. The phone runs on iOS 7.1.2 (its final supported version from 2014), thus leaving it completely vulnerable to modern exploits, malware, and zero-day attacks that Apple has long since stopped patching.
Some of the key risks highlighted by experts include:
– No security updates since 2014, making it susceptible to known vulnerabilities exploited by hackers.
– Inability to run modern apps or receive app updates, limiting functionality and exposing users to outdated, unpatched software.
– Weak encryption standards and a lack of support for current TLS protocols risk data interception during browsing or messaging.
– Potential for physical attacks via USB accessories (e.g., malicious Lightning cables) due to outdated hardware protections.
Apple discontinued support for the iPhone 4 in 2014 and has not issued any security updates since. The company strongly recommends using devices running at least iOS 15 or later for basic security, with iOS 18 (current in 2026) offering advanced protections like Lockdown Mode, improved encryption, and rapid patch deployment.
Hence, if you want to try out an old iPhone 4 for the sake of nostalgia, just use it as a toy. Don;t login with your accounts or put any of your data.
