Exactly.
Shelly 2.5 (Gen1) after 2 years are useless (they often lose wifi connection or even don’t respond to physical input) so you must replace them.
Ideally, when we discover/add a new device we should be asked if we are adding a new device or replacing an old one.
This would help a lot, especially in long-term statistics, automations, dashboards, etc
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+1 on topic
Off topic but I can tell you it’s not always the case with the shellies. I’ve had 2.5PM (Gen1) open and close my roller shutters for 4 years every single day, still work like a charm.
Agreed! Can you post a WTH for this if there isn’t one already?
I searched my post history and I did vote for this device replacement feature in WTH 2022 WTH there is no easy and automated way to replace devices
Is that similar to what you’re describing?
I am also annoyed with replacing devices but this one is the most household-facing issue that affects more than just me. 
Lucky You
I replaced around 20 Shelly 2.5 devices in my amd my parents house. Luckily I was able to replace them with Gen3 devices with 50% discount
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If not already posted I will do
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Agreed. And not just with “advanced” devices like phones.
While I’ve had good success with dozens of a particular zwave switch, which has about 20 associated entities, I did have one die about two weeks after installing. Replaced under warranty, but by that time, it had been integrated with many automations, scripts, and even a few scenes. Also replaced some simpler devices with only a few entities, which is manageable but annoying.
It’s be great, when HA recognizes a new device, to just say it replaces an existing device and choose which one. Then HA can match the entities and everything else still works. Or, if it’s not the same make/model, prompt the user to map entity on the device to old entity.
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If I change my device name it shouldn’t affect all my notification calls too… Especially on iOS there’s no way to specify an SSID so sometimes I play around with device name to change my hotpsot SSID.
I think it’s actually quite easy to replace a phone or any other device. Just give it the same name as the device you’re replacing.
Name your phone “Keiths Phone” instead of “Samsung S22”
Name your living room TV “Living Room TV” instead of “Sony Bravia 3”
Name your kitchen light “Kitchen Light” instead of “EcoDim BV Dimmer-Switch-ZB3.0”
etcetera
Then when you replace any device just remove the old one and give the new one the same name.
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Yes. Make it even easier now!
Good is not good enough
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That indeed does work, but it takes forethought. But, for a normal non-tech user they buy a phone, log into Home Assistant app, then they don’t get notifications and wonder why it’s not working. 
Their thought process is… I logged in as me, why don’t I get my notifications.
When a Device got replaced, its LTS/History should be migrated / copied as well.
I just had that Case, and realised the new device doesnt have all the precious Statistics belonging to the Users Device.
For this Usecase I would suggest a generic possibility to migrate/copy/edit/delete the Recorder/LTS:
Just give it the same name and the statistics will be migrated.
I think i am missing a stupid little step. If i give it the same name while it exists, all entities get a “_2” suffix.
If i delete it…well…i assume it is deleted.
The device is deleted, not its statistics.
Delete the old device first, then give the new device the same name.
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This also does not work if you want to keep the old device, either for a while, or forever.
I kept my old phone for a week or so just to make sure I didn’t forget to move over any MFA or whatever apps.
Please keep the WTHs on topic, there are multiple notification WTHs about this that have a similar amount of votes. The conversation about them is not needed here.
For this specific reason the android app opts not to restore the session data. However you cant replace a device and expect the old device to continue to work with HA as a result. New tokens and details need to be added for the new device. Personally speaking i handle this by using groups for devices and templates so when i update my phone (annually lol) i always use a new name to avoid confusion. This way i only have to update 1 location making it easier to manage different device names like Dannys Pixel 8 or Dannys Pixel 9 etc… Thats what i prefer but i can see the desire to just have Dannys Phone too.
We have a lot of use case to consider. Updating a phone can mean a few things. While you may want to replace the phone you may give it to another family member, or use a wall display, store in a drawer, sell to another etc…
So replace may not be what everyone wants in the grand scheme of things.
With all that said the phone is the one unique device that has these considerations when you consider how often it changes compared to any other device.