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I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

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Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#151

Post by al_borland »

pclowes wrote: post #8

My cynical take is that small phones don't exist because they are not the product. Similar to vape pens the product is the addictive substance the device loads. In this case its apps and ads. A smaller screen probably negatively impacts KPIs on many levels, at Google/Apple/Meta/X and on down through the ecosystem. I understand that Apple did not make enough money to make it worth their while to continue the iphone mi…

This is the part that frustrates me. Apple keeps introducing software “solutions” for hardware problems. Reachability, Screen Time, Focus Modes, etc. A smaller phone naturally solves most of these problems. Small phones act as more of a utility device for when you’re away from a proper computer. This is all I want my phone to be. I really think they got it right the first time in 2007.

I ended up switching from a 13 mini (I had the 12 mini as well) to a 16 Pro. I was having a lot of battery life issues, and kept running into apps that clearly didn’t fully test with the smaller screen. I also really missed having a telephoto lens.

My phone usage went up; my laptop/desktop usage went down. I don’t like that. Compared to a normal computer, a phone is still worse in almost every way, other than mobility. It’s just now tolerable enough to put up with more of the time. I’m writing this on the phone, it would have been easier on a keyboard and mouse.

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#153

Post by al_borland »

zanecodes wrote: post #129
2muchcoffeeman wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re way too cynical and have let your cynicism cloud history. The first phablets were probably the Galaxy Note line starting in 2011 which was met with some skepticism due to the size of them. These were well before the edge to edge screen days. So you had 5.7 inch screens with a bezel. They were huge but I would routinely see small women pull these things out of their hand bags and press a device that obscured al…

The Dell Streak (shoutout to the other 3 people who bought one) had a 5 inch screen in 2010, a notable jump from contemporary phones like the iPhone 4 which was still 3.5", and other Android devices like the HTC Droid series which were around 3.7" and slowly starting to creep upwards to differentiate themselves from the iPhone. I think the largest Android devices you could get at the time were still smaller than 4".

I remember Dell showing this off at the All Thing D conference and Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal asked the Dell spokesperson to put it up to his head, and told him it looked like a waffle. To this days it’s all I think of when I see someone holding a massive phone up to the side of their head.

That thing could really stand out in a crowd. I was at a baseball stadium for a concert that year, and spotted someone with a Dell Streak as I was heading down to the field. In a sea of people that was the one phone I spotted. I stopped to ask the guy about it briefly.

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#155

Post by const_cast »

khurs wrote: post #39
pclowes wrote: post #8

My cynical take is that small phones don't exist because they are not the product. Similar to vape pens the product is the addictive substance the device loads. In this case its apps and ads. A smaller screen probably negatively impacts KPIs on many levels, at Google/Apple/Meta/X and on down through the ecosystem. I understand that Apple did not make enough money to make it worth their while to continue the iphone mi…

>No major player wants a smaller screen because it has downstream impacts on the pipeline of addictive material and ad pixels they can stuff into ocular nerves. There are lots of phone manufacturers who have no ads business. They just make phones so why would they care? Size is dictated by trouser pocket size/handbag size and usage. Editing photos and movies to upload onto social media is probably better on a big scr…

> There are lots of phone manufacturers who have no ads business.

I mean... none of the big ones.

For the others, they DO make small phones, and even non-addictive phones. We have e-ink phones in pure black and white.

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#156

Post by saagarjha »

nunez wrote: post #147
pclowes wrote: post #8

My cynical take is that small phones don't exist because they are not the product. Similar to vape pens the product is the addictive substance the device loads. In this case its apps and ads. A smaller screen probably negatively impacts KPIs on many levels, at Google/Apple/Meta/X and on down through the ecosystem. I understand that Apple did not make enough money to make it worth their while to continue the iphone mi…

I thought the theory behind the 12 and 13 minis was that Apple had a huge surplus of parts that they needed to offload, and making the minis was a profitable way of doing that.

But they launched alongside the flagship devices?

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#157

Post by david422 »

MinimalAction wrote: post #122

I signed up for this perhaps two years ago. I don't remember the update banner being present at the top which says it's officially moving forward. I didn't find anything more on that, what's the actual status now?

I think it's a dead project. There hasn't been any updates. I signed up about the same time you did.

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#158

Post by const_cast »

theshackleford wrote: post #117
frosted-flakes wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Folding phones don't solve the problem of oversized phones, which is that they are awkward and cumbersome to use.

> they are awkward and cumbersome to use. For you. As someone with large hands, I appreciate that phones grew in size and I swapped to larger devices as soon as I could.

For... well, most people. Half of people are women, so I don't know how they do it. I'm a man, with man hands, and modern phones are not one hand operable. You need two hands. Even if you can do a particular operation with one hand, the phone is unsteady and it's awkward.

I think people with large hands are definitely the minority. So, we're not optimizing for hand size. We're optimizing for engagement, I think.

Re: I want an iPhone Mini-sized Android phone (2022)

#159

Post by al_borland »

wyre wrote: post #116
2muchcoffeeman wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re way too cynical and have let your cynicism cloud history. The first phablets were probably the Galaxy Note line starting in 2011 which was met with some skepticism due to the size of them. These were well before the edge to edge screen days. So you had 5.7 inch screens with a bezel. They were huge but I would routinely see small women pull these things out of their hand bags and press a device that obscured al…

The general population wants larger phones because they are addicted to their screens.

Apple did a horrible job marketing the mini. I ran into a lot of people who saw my 12 mini and said they would prefer that size, but didn’t know it existed.

When I went to buy it, and the case, the employees at the Apple Store questioned me and tried to push me toward the normal iPhone. This is the first and only time I’ve ever felt Apple Store employees steering purchasing decisions. I had to go in there knowing what I wanted, and had to assert that it was what I wanted repeatedly.

Are people buying big phones because they are addicted to their screens, or are people addicted to their screens because of big phones?

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