[GrayShade]

About years ago I saw a phone that could no longer connect to Play Store, probably because of lacking support for newer TLS versions. It was a rebranded Chinese phone, with no firmware update available.

I managed to install Firefox and a couple of apps by transferring the APKs from my phone using Bluetooth, but it's a popular brand in my country and I'm sure a lot of people are in the same situation.

[gambiting]

I actually dug out my old Nexus One last week because I had an idea for a project and yeah, can't do anything on that phone anymore. It still connects to my WiFi, but it can't open Google play any more and of course there are no updates available to make it work. Most websites don't open in the browser.

Funnily enough, Google maps still work. I'm impressed that their APIs have remained the same for a very long time now.

And yes, I can probably still install APKs manually or find a custom firmware with more modern version of Android where Google play will work. But that requires certain amount of skill and time, so for most owners this phone is only slightly more functional than a dumbphone.