I typically paid 150 to 250 Canadian. They last 2 to 3 years and meet my needs right up to the next purchase. I am due this year for a switch.
As for PCs and Laptops. All are old BF buys or rescued "garbage". I am setting up a Dell Latitude E5420 (2013) for a current need. (Official disposed by my employer and intercepted before sent to electronic recycling.) Other resurrected acquisitions that are operational are from 2013 and 2015. I can do this because "what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career".
I like keeping this systems out of the garbage for a few more years.
Seems penny wise pound foolish compared to getting something like an iPhone SE or a low end pixel (eg. 7a) which have 6-8 years of support, rather than the 1-2 years support you get from low end phones.
Replacing every 2-3 years also means replacing the battery every 2-3 years, which you were likely going to want to do eventually anyway.
TBH, I don't get the flagship phone thing at all. When my employer was paying, I got some of them-- a Lumia 1020, a LG V10, and a Samsung GSII-- and I didn't really use any of the performance. The phone that was the biggest upgrade for me was a Umidigi F1, because it really had two-day battery life for the first time.
With the proliferation of javascript heavy SPAs and electron apps, you'll definitely notice the performance difference even if you're not gaming or whatever.
Whatsapp, email, social medias, online shopping, mobile banking, and a little bit of photo editing.
On the other side, cutting edge PC is a way more attractive thing cause it allows you to play 3D-intensive games on max setting, for example.
Now a self built PC can last a long time if you build it in mind with future upgrades, mostly RAM
No question PC is still #1 for upgradibility. If I'm an avid gamer or a video editor, then yes definitely will use PC, instead.
iPhone 16 would have been close to perfect if it had say 3X zoom and 120hz screen. The weight and thickness of Pro also make it slightly harder to hold.