I'm in the same boat. On one hand, I have no need to upgrade my Nexus 5 yet because it still runs everything without any issues and will be getting the latest version of the OS. It's more about having an "upgrade path" in the event that I break my phone or it gets stolen. I also bought mine for $350 at launch and at that price, I wouldn't feel terrible if I had to buy a similarly priced (but modestly updated) device after a year or two if I had to replace it.
The other thing that disappoints me is that it does away with one of the (arguably) biggest benefits of the more affordable models: a highly-specced (if perhaps missing a few unnecessary bells and whistles) device that's priced low enough to offer some real incentive to people who might consider leaving the subsidy/contract model behind. At least in the US, there isn't much challenge to this model because most people will pick a contract over no contract if it means paying $100-200 up front instead of the cost of a new laptop. As a result, carriers have less incentive to compete on price and terms because most everyone is either stuck in a contract or assumes they might as well sign one because the alternative is shelling out a lot of money up front.
I had kicked around ditching contracts for a while but usually ended up in the same boat. My options were a flagship phone for $200 up front on a contract, the same phone for $700 without a contract, or some crap phone for who knows how much on prepaid. Getting a flagship-level device for $350 up front gave me the push I needed to move to prepaid and it's been great. If they ever piss me off I can just go get a SIM from somewhere else. No carrier BS and no $700+ device costs.
Right now I'm just glad to be getting 5.0 on my N5. It's been a great device and while a spec bump may have convinced me to spend another $350 this year, at least I'll get that new-phone feel from the new OS.
The other thing that disappoints me is that it does away with one of the (arguably) biggest benefits of the more affordable models: a highly-specced (if perhaps missing a few unnecessary bells and whistles) device that's priced low enough to offer some real incentive to people who might consider leaving the subsidy/contract model behind. At least in the US, there isn't much challenge to this model because most people will pick a contract over no contract if it means paying $100-200 up front instead of the cost of a new laptop. As a result, carriers have less incentive to compete on price and terms because most everyone is either stuck in a contract or assumes they might as well sign one because the alternative is shelling out a lot of money up front.
I had kicked around ditching contracts for a while but usually ended up in the same boat. My options were a flagship phone for $200 up front on a contract, the same phone for $700 without a contract, or some crap phone for who knows how much on prepaid. Getting a flagship-level device for $350 up front gave me the push I needed to move to prepaid and it's been great. If they ever piss me off I can just go get a SIM from somewhere else. No carrier BS and no $700+ device costs.
Right now I'm just glad to be getting 5.0 on my N5. It's been a great device and while a spec bump may have convinced me to spend another $350 this year, at least I'll get that new-phone feel from the new OS.