I did the same thing recently, in what ways do you feel safer/more protected? Apart from my search results looking a bit different it feels kinda the same.
I need to replace my Pixel 6 Pro soon (cracked screen, issues with phone in general) and out of curiosity I checked iPhones. The last few versions all have very similar specs, I could get a 12 and wouldn't be missing too much. I can see why people would constantly upgrade.
Things had to get bad in ST before it became a socialist utopia though.