u dont need an expensive phone for the internet/emails even ur $50 nokia will do that.
That's true, but those really cheap phones don't have wlan, which sucks. I rather use my old phone until I can buy something little better than buy another crappy phone with weak performance and extensibility. My current Nokia (3110 classic) has served me about 3-4 years now and I guess it will be just enough for a year or two more.
How often do you people buy a new phone? I got my third phone going in 13 years so I can't say I follow the trends that much. I think this whole smartphone business has changed a bit the customer habbits. People buy a new phone more often to get some new applications and games running.