Final answer:
Phone updates do not directly lower your phone bills, but technological advancements over time have led to cheaper phone calls and a greater variety of service options. It's also worth noting that some updates can be controversial, such as when they intentionally degrade performance to drive new phone sales.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question is whether phone updates reduce the cost of phone bills. While there are many aspects to the economics of cell phone ownership, the direct act of updating your phone's software typically does not reduce your monthly phone bill. Updates to your phone's operating system or apps usually involve new features, security patches, and performance improvements and do not have a direct impact on the cost of your phone plan or the price you pay for data, text, and call services.
However, over time, advancements in technology have led to cheaper phone calls, especially long distance, and a better-quality phone service. There is also a shift towards more consumer choice with a wide variety of payment plans available. It is also important to note that while technology improvements have led to lower prices and more services, some updates have been controversial, such as cases where updates have intentionally degraded performance leading to lawsuits, as seen with Apple's battery-related performance throttling.