Good for you? No one's saying you're not allowed to buy one every year if you want to...

Please tell me you at least give the old phone to someone who can still use it for multiple years, rather than putting it with recycling where they may reuse some metals or, at best, some of the parts

So you think they are scrapping a year-old phone after paying you $500? I think they replace the battery and resell it as refurbished.

I don't know, hence phrasing it as a hope/expectation but not as 'thinking' either way

You trade them in for $500.