In 2026, life feels like one big rental. Music: rented. Films: rented. TV: rented. Media and software has quietly shifted from something you bought once to something that diligently empties your bank account every month. And now, Apple is giving hardware the same treatment.
The company launched a new upgrade programme last month, letting users ‘lease’ their new iPhone or Mac through ‘Buy Now Pay Later’ service Klarna. In a world where we seem to own fewer and fewer of the products we use, Apple’s decision to reinvent itself, as Apple leaker Mark Gorman puts it, as the “world’s biggest subscription provider”, feels a little depressing.
