I miss when you could get a flagship phone that could fit in your hand
I know I have small hands but c'mon. Flagship phones these days are strait up small tablets, not even what we'd have called on phablets 15 years ago.
I know it's what people buy, but I'm still sad that if I want a phone that small then I have to deal with camera and display a couple gens old
every time i "upgrade" my phone it gets bigger, i hate it. the perfect size was what whatever iPhone 5 was doing, i want to go back to that
Wider, longer, flatter, thinner, and harder to hold without touching shit at the edge of the screen. I miss being able to grip a phone by its buttons.
I loved my iPhone 5 more than any other device I've owned. Perfect size.
iPhone 5 / original SE was a good design, and a good size, but it was also the first iPhone I had to buy a case for because it was so damn light and thin it was hard to handle compared to the thicker, glass-plated 4.
Oof this is the reason why I went with Fold. Basically when folded it takes almost the same area as an iPhone 5 albeit quite thicker. But my hand adjusted to the thickness quite nicely.
Having basically a small tablet when you unfold the phone for actual two handed use is good too.
I miss phones that experimented.
I had the Motorola backflip (that was a fun one) and had one of the first phones with a fingerprint sensor that everyone said was a gimmick, had the one with the "indestructible screen" (Motorola Z2 force iirc) that I had a lot of fun throwing around till I broke it (But not the screen! I'll give them that lmao), had every Nexus device until the bitter end (I cursed Google for a long time when they decided Pixels was the way forward, I didn't pick up a pixel again until the Pixel Fold 0G) and so so many others over the years.
Until one day they just stopped being cool for years, hell the Foldy phone has been the coolest innovation they've put out in years and we're already back to nothing but iterations again
You would really enjoy the When Phones Were Fun series on YouTube if you haven't seen them
The box for HTC HD2 had <---- BIG ----> as dimensions of the phone. It had a 4.3" screen that actually was huge at the time (2009), but it's hilarious from today's perspective.
When phones were still fun
Well, it may only have had a 4 inch screen, but it also had huge bezels. It's less tall than modern flagships, but almost the same width, making it similar for one handed use.
https://www.phonearena.com/phones/size/HTC-HD2,Google-Pixel-9-Pro/phones/3887,12285
Notice that the dimensions in the picture are marked only for the screen proper, not including bezels.
16:9 + huge bezels. A Huawei Mate 8 (6.0") which would be tiny today is still more of a brick than a S25 Ultra with 6.8".
Notice that the dimensions in the picture are marked only for the screen proper, not including bezels.
Those were the days
I literally gasped. iPAQ510, my beloved
I would vomit if I had to look at the Windows logo every time I pulled out my phone. Google is not perfect and they've made mistakes with Android, but at least it's Open Source. Microsoft has a much worse record of opposing Open Source initiatives...
I wish I could get a flagship phone with a swappable battery, headphone jack, SD slot and allow my apps to interface with each other's files when I want without having to fuck around with permission bullshit.. I don't care if it's the size of a dinner plate
Fairphone might be somewhat closer for what you want
App restrictions can be disabled in developer options.
I would categorize that as having to fuck around with permission bullshit but thank you for the suggestion.
Also make it durable. Thicker. Heavier. I'm going to slap a case on it otherwise
I don't know of any with swappable batteries anymore. The HTC U24 and U23 series both have headphone jack and MicroSD slot. There are a few others.
Just get a USB-c dongle and let that sit on your headphones. These days nearly everything has USB-c anyway and the sound is way better. The last phones I had with the USB-c jack (RedMi Note 13 Pro and iPhone 4 before that) all sounded worse than me using a cheap DAC. Getting an expensive DAC will improve the sound even more.
Personally I say that most would need to get a NAS before they need a SD card or you need to get a dedicated Camera or MP4 player if your pictures or music exceed the 500GB max and streaming isn;t an option using a NAS.
The rest of your points are valid.
Personally I say that most would need to get a NAS before they need a SD card or you need to get a dedicated Camera or MP4 player if your pictures or music exceed the 500GB max and streaming isn;t an option using a NAS.
Yeah spending 100s of dollars on whole other devices you have to carry around instead of like 10 for an SD card makes a ton of sense.
Companies trying to make foldable phones happen are going the wrong way.
They are making giant phones that unfold into tablets when really they should be making small phones that unfold into something just large enough you can watch Netflix on.
You mean like this? https://www.samsung.com/us/smartphones/galaxy-z-flip6/
I think Motorola makes a much better flip phone in terms of experience overall. I also really like their software, however their track record on updates is less than stellar.
I believe foldable phone is "invented" by idiots who don't know design and good products. Literally "if we put in advanced tech, people will buy it", lol.
You mean like the latest Razr's? https://www.motorola.com/us/en/family/razr.html
I think what I would like is a bigass flip phone that unfolds into a tablet but instead of being thick as hell because the tablet is some OLED bullshit, I just want like, a e-reader. So I can have an easy way to read a book in my pocket.
Skill issue
How did you get a picture of me?
I miss when flagship phone were affordable and worth the cost
This is the real problem.
They do NOTHING to improve or innovate. In fact, we've lost most great features over the years. The headphone jack for high quality audio, the micro SD card slot for easy upgrades and migrations, the IR blasters, the replaceable batteries...
It's a fucking joke. Peak phone tech was the Samsung Galaxy S4.
Sorry, you gotta upgrade everything every 5 years, because otherwise there's a security vulnerability! Sorry, looks like there will be no new updates on your software, no compatibility! Surely, things have become so much more efficient in the last 5 years as a result of processing gains, and surely that will be passed onto the consumer rather than eaten up in the middle, and surely we need that increased processing power so you can run the increasingly dwindling number of social media sites that are actually relevant!
Sorry, looks like we got rid of the headphone jack because it takes up too much space and it's too hard to make the phone water resistant! The IR blaster isn't relevant anymore because everyone has unilaterally switched to wifi operated smart TVs! Surely! Sorry, the micro SD card slot took up too much space, we need to use that space for processing power! Same with irreplaceable batteries! Sorry, the 16:9 aspect ratio we used to have for phones isn't available in any phone anymore, because we decided to replace the physical buttons and ugly bezels with basically unusable screen space! But we're still gonna have a hole punched in the screen for the camera!
I dunno. Modern phones are fucking dogshit now, I hate them so much it's unreal. Even the software is progressively getting worse year over year. Shit used to be so basically functional and it's become so horrible.
You no longer need to have flagship phone, to have good experience though. I am rocking my Samsung Galaxy A52 and it does everything I want it to. Only current localization and direction seem to behave weirdly and not accurate when navigating using Google Maps (especially when walking) but on other apps it's perfectly fine, so go figure, lol.
I miss physical keyboards that you were able to flip from the back.
I don't think smartphone keyboards became usable until Swipe typing became a thing.
I have the opposite viewpoint. I miss big phones that were actually big, and not just really tall.
I miss my Nexus 6.
They used to have a whole variety.
Now top-end phones are all almost the same dimensions
I'll go shittier phone before I'll go phablet ever again. I bought a motorola razr 2023. I bought a foldable because I want the shit to fit in my pocket. It also is the only flip phone I've seen that hasn't made the imbecilic decision to coat the entire front panel in glass. I don't need a full miniature phone making my shit more fragile when it's clamped shut. If they continue to glass panel it up on the outside of newer editions I'll try to find a case that just covers the entire outside.
But ultimately I'm holding onto this thing as long as I possibly can.
I have no idea why everyone -- including the reviewers -- think people need a glass panel on the outside of a flip phone with all kinds of smart capabilities. The phone is fucking closed. If I want to use the phone I'll open it. All I need is maybe the time.
It's useful to take pictures. I usually turn on the outside screen so the people I'm taking picture of can pose themselves better. My kids love it too.
Sometimes I also use it for maps navigation when walking somewhere new. There's actually lots of use cases for it, I just get a case with screen protector for it.
I got the plus version of the same phone to get the bigger screen on the back.
It wasn't worth it, I never use that screen and it just annoys me. I wish my phone was smaller.
I got the Pixel 9P for this reason. It's actually notably smaller than the previous models.
I love my 9 pro! The size is perfect, and i didn't have to sacrifice on camera this time.
Oh is it?? I loved my pixel 3 and when it was time for an upgrade the pixel 7 was the flagship and was way too big. I switched over to a Samsung s21 5g and it's been a decent size, but I'm at a loss for what to do when this one inevitably dies on me. Glad to hear the newer pixels are potentially one-handable for my tiny hands.
We're the kind of people that are pushing our phones to end of support, it's not a market that moves product and thus not one the big companies listen to.
I of course don't miss small flagship phones because my S10e is still perfectly serviceable.
My next phone will be e-ink at any size
S10e
They can pry my 3.5 mm jack from my cold dead hands. Already got the battery replaced once.
I'm gonna miss that swipe pad on the power button when it finally gives up the ghost.
Also still on a S10e, havent found a newer phone that isn't a downgrade in some aspects.
s9+ here still. I intend to use this phone until it costs more to repair than to get a new one.
Look at all that branding.
I remember when I was picked on at work for how big my Note 3 was. They used to call it "my insecurity". Now it's basically smaller than the smallest standard size.
The Note 3 did look ridiculously large back then. Kind of insane.
I just want a keyboard or a modern take on the Sidekick design.
What, Flagship? There's no small phones anymore.
https://lemmy.world/c/compactphones - the activity here reflects this x_x
iPhone SE is small. I have been buying them when coming out, they have been fantastic. If you want android, not sure what’s out there.
Same here. The Google Pixel, but I think they recently eliminated the small version.
Man I loved the 2016 one. Got the 2020 one when that broke and that was already too big for me. I have chronic tendonitis, stretching like that is painful.
This is why the sales of cargo pants are up.
Yeah, Big Pants is into this. What if instead of phone cases manufacturers sell pants to carry the phone around. Imagine...
... the iPants. Specially made for carrying the latest iPhone with you. For just 2999,-. You can't wash it tho, and it will not be compatible with the upcoming model.
The patriarchy strikes again!
....its 2035 and the ending of jeans as we know them. Today the birth of the unipocket marks the start of another page in crotch covering technology. We'll no longer be bound by the primitive tubular jeans of old. Jeans with two small front pockets that wouldn't cover anyone's privates in the case, the oh so common zipper failure. No, no ziper, no flimsy buttons either. Those have always been weakness. The future is brighter than we could have ever imagined. That's right! Front and rear screens covering every crotch on the planets. And a screen belt to hold it all together. And for the perpetualization of Victoria's Secret, the new double circular scraw... A scraw covering every pair of tits on the planet! Imagine full crotch ads! Imagine all the profit!
We'll all start wearing kilts with enormous sporrans
Sir! Please calm your sporrans! Or are you happy to see me? Wait hold on, we have a family guy short, it's the classic chicken fight scene.
It was already difficult enough to undo bra hooks, but now you can watch 6 unskipable ads instead and it'll release itself automatically. Much profit indeed.
The problem is they took it too far.
Plus, the larger phones do actually fit in my hands, so...
People simply did not buy the small phones.
I bought one as recently as the iPhone 13 mini, but Apple has also discontinued their normal sized phones :(
I know, I said as much in my post - although rereading it, it's kinda phrased ambiguously
It's not even flagship phones. Even the cheaper ones are huge. When I had to replace my LG phone (6") I went to an electronics store to see what's on the market right now. Of all phones availiable there only were two android phones (I don't know which brand) that were sized similarly to my LG phone. Both of them were in the 800-€-price-range.
Similar with iPhones. Almost all models exceeded the 6" screen size, except for one or two models which were in the 1000-€-price-range. They also had an iPhone SE there, that had the desired size. I bought this as a refurbished one online for a fraction of the original price.
It's harder and harder to find a phone that has a size that either fits in your hand or that can be carried inside your pants without restricting your ability to sit down while the phone is inside the pocket.
That's not an "even". Cheaper phones have been larger as the default for a while now, because they're often the primary, if not the only device their owners have.
I like how the Pixel devices, while not small, are putting the flagship features in both the "normal" size model and the XL/Plus.
Pixel 9 yes, but Pixel 7 didn't have the telephoto camera that 7pro had.
I think my issue is that there has been an Overton-like window shift wrt what is considered normal sized and what is considered large.
A lot of companies are doing that these days, especially on the Android side. I love how Google promises certain gimmicks that don’t make it to the actual device even after months of release though lol.
Unihertz specializes in small phones. They aren't flagship spec but they are midrange at sensible prices. They also have keyboard phones and even a phone with a built in DMR radio for Amateur and GMRS use.
Not a plug, I don't even own one I just love that they are daring to be different.
Chinese company and the phones use Mediatek chips, so no custom ROM support last I checked. Otherwise I would have been all over it.
phablets
Is what Pharrell calls his daily meds
As you add more compute per user interaction ("smart" features), you increase power consumption. To keep an 18hour discharge cycle, you have to have more battery. Since phone thickness is a negative marketing feature but increased screen size is a positive marketing feature, you end up with bigger phones.
Every time they reduce compute power consumption, feature inflation overtakes the gain and more power is needed over time. Try turning on battery saver in the morning... even with "normal" use the battery will last significantly longer due to disabling background power consumption.
I started off with iphone 7, then pixel 5, now on pixel 7a. With each phone, it got increased in size. Pixel 5 was a compromise for me. Pixel 7a feels a step too big to be pocketable.
Pixel 5 was the perfect size, imho.
Do you have small pockets?
Not that it’s everyday practical, but you can definitely get small phones. There are definitely lesser known names out there that make phones in all sizes.
And there's still room for a headphone jack.
It’sa silly little thing, but manages to get like 5 days standby or 2-3 days light use.
I know they exist, but I specifically mentioned flagship phones because they have the best cameras and screens, and I take a lot of pictures
lol. Is that a windows phone?
It is lol
Know what's even crazier? I've installed a launcher on my pixel 7 pro to give me a Windows phone homescreen.
Fuck Microsoft, but those phones were banging. If only anyone made apps for them
I have big hands and loved my Samsung Galaxy Flip 4 for this reason, plus it would fit comfortably in my pockets (especially when leaning/bending forwards)
Notice the past tense? Despite taking very good care of it, the hinges didn't last long. Rip
I still have my flip 4, it's a tough little nut to crack. Has been my daily for 2 years now, going for 3!
The Pixel 9 Pro is a flagship phone, the only difference to the Pixel 9 Pro XL is the size, charging speed and battery capacity
The phone you see on that left is a pixel 7 pro.
\
Is the pixel 9 pro much smaller than that? Because I wouldn't call the pixel 7 pro "small"
Yes, the Pixel 7 Pro was when Google still only had 2 models, the big pro model and the small non-pro model.
With the Pixel 9 series there are 3 options, the budget pixel 9, which is a small phone, the Pixel 9 Pro, which is a flagship but the same size as the small Pixel 9,or the Pixel 9 Pro XL, which is the big version of the flagship Pixel 9 Pro. So you no longer need to compromise if you want a small Pixel phone
I actually went from a 7 pro to a 9 pro, and while Idk if its small enough for you it is a massive change in usability for me. I disliked the 7 it was usable but annoying at times to reach stuff I almost never have that issue with the 9 pro.
I miss my Droid Mini.
I mean, i still have it. It's just nigh worthless.
I'm still rocking a galaxy s8 and I love it. Only problem is many of the apps are dropping support and I cant update the os.
Really not looking forward to a new phone but itll have to happen soon
There's definitely someone making a LineageOS port.
I have big hands and long fingers. I'm still waiting for phones to get big enough for me lol
Oh, I feel you. I have been eyeballing iPad Mini as a phone, but can't make myself buy an Apple product.
Same for me with the Samsung Note. It's just a great size but can't bring myself to use it and screw apple and their technology design for idiots.
This is why I get just the regular s24 or whatever, like the pixel 8a.
I dont like big phones.
Even that's too big.
That's a pixel 7 pro on the left, which is only a little bigger than the 7a. I want something way smaller
I have large hands and I don't like having to make the compromise of features or size. I prefer phones around 5in or a smidge under. But to have a modern camera I have an almost 7in phone. It's really frustrating.
The zenfones upto 9 were the perfect size imo, I'm fine with 6.2-6.3 inches though.
I’m not a size queen, I’ll take any inches I can get,
I am happy with the size of my iPhone 16 and pretty sure there are other brands that don't have these massive phones as tablets.
If I didn't need the flexibility my Android (Lineage) gives me, the iPhone 13 mini is one phone that's actually a nice size.
And my Samsung S10e - just it's out of date for firmware updates.
Though I'd actually prefer something smaller and use my phone for less.
One of the few positives of today's designs is the better screen-to-body ratios that we have. This would mean that we can have a 5" screen in the same physical body size that previously used to house a 4 point something inch screen. But for some reason the latest flagship small phones are from a few years ago - I guess sales figures show they're not sought after.
I have the same problem and my latest was an asus zenfone after a ton of research. Its been pretty solid actually.
Zenfone was heavily promoted as a "small" phone but its larger than the base galaxy, despite having a smaller display
I do wish it was slightly shorter. They just don't make small enough phones anymore for my taste.
I'm rocking an SE2 and probably next year I'll reluctantly upgrade to an SE3, which I will keep for at least two more years. After that, I'm fairly certain I'm cooked, as all available phones will be faceid phablets. FML.
I've just gone from an iPhone 13 mini to a Pixel 9, and two weeks in I'm still amazed at how damn big it is. I still have the 13 and get a bit spun out when I pick it up.
It's kinda sad that there are hardly any small phones anymore. I chose the 13 mini because I wanted a small phone that I wasn't going to spend all day doomscrolling on, and that broadly worked well for me. This time I wanted a phone that runs GrapheneOS, and don't need the expense of any pro models, so the Pixel 9 was it. And it's huge.
Aren't the Pixel phones reasonably compact still?
Yea the a series is supposed to be the small, cheap and good line
The non-a but not the Pros are smaller, but "affordable flagship"
Pro series are the big premium flagships or Foldy phones (until el Goog changes their mind (again) at least)
This is not true at least not anymore. The pixel 8a is almost the same size as the pixel 8. If anything it's a tiny bit bigger and heavier
https://www.gsmarena.com/google_pixel_8-12546.php
https://www.gsmarena.com/google_pixel_8a-12937.php
Also the pixel 7, 8 and 9 are all practically the same size which IMO is not small at all. They are all huge with screens over 6in in size.
They also all weight in the 190g ballpark which in my opinion is too heavy as well.
I'd probably have a Pixel if I didn't have a habit of dropping my phone off the top of a ladder.
the A series is smallish, the last small android phone was probably the Asus Zenfone 10, then Asus axed that line and merged the Zenfone line and ROG phone line and followed the ROG phones size. A phones however aren't flagship so theyd fail the check.
Still too damn big
Yep, just bought one the other day and it was about 1/8th" shorter than my previous phone
6a is pretty good and will be supported for a bit. Wish they were more repairable though...
The phone on the left is a pixel 7 pro.
So, yes, by modern standards.
\
But no, as you can see by the comparison to the phone next to it.
\
And that's kind of the point I'm making.
So, yes, by modern standards
My wife's P7 and my P8P are both roughly the same dimensions as an old landline handset would be (my phone is maybe half an inch thicker than the landline at my work)
Cell phones of the 00's were small by phone standards, modern phones are closer to old landline handset sizes than 00's cells, so I'd say the 00's cells are the ones off the standard
Hey at least it doesn't have 3566 tonnes displacement
I thought that was going to be my mom.
The pixel 9 pro is smaller than my pixel 6. And i hope they continue making smaller pro phones, and an xl variant cus i want to buy a smaller pixel when i need to buy a new one
When I upgraded from a Pixel 6a to a Pixel 8, I was really surprised to find out that not only was my phone slightly smaller, it also had a slightly larger screen. I'm not super happy with google, but the things they focus on with the Pixel line has me pretty bought in.
Well, yes.
However I do feel that top vanilla Samsung (S2x) and iPhone (normal Pro, especially since the 16 has the good snappers like the big model) at least still fit the bill of being natural one-hanged-phones.
Even Sony ships of flags (1 ... of which "1 IV" runs Lineage OS!) while big arent as wide and much more handy.
But, I cannot help myself thinking that there must be some market sense in like actually small but premium phones. Something like a 4.2" slab with a 4" screen (thin bezels) and proper cams.
Since shitty versions exist, it must be just less profitable for the big brands to get in to (and phone startups can't make much difference until Linux phones come of age to handle the software side of upgrades and security/privacy).
Bullshit. I have an s24. Before that, I had an s10e.
They both are too big for one handed use, but the s24 even more so.
Before I bought the s24, I even considered to switch to ios after years of Android only, just for their iPhone Mini range. Guess what, they cancelled that.
There are simply no phones by major manufacturers that can be used with one hand.
5mm diff (actually more the 1mm diff in width) can indeed be noticeable if it's already borderline. Still basically the same phone tho.
I have definitely wondered that, since my "normal" phone is already too big for real one-handed use, should I just get the big/plus/max version just so it's a bit more like a tablet? If I am typically going to be using it with two hands, seated at my desk or on the couch, maybe I would like that better.
One word: cartels. Also why make good phones when they can give you an uncomfortable one so you wanna switch sooner.
No way. I have an S24, and this thing is huge compared to my S10. Which was already bigger than I wanted. The last phone I've had that I liked the size of was the S6.
I definitely would love a 4.2" slab.
I thought about the 1 IV, because it still had a headphone jack. But there was a deal going for the S24. That's how they get ya.
Yes, Sony phones are a bit expensive.
I'm not sure what are you taking about the size difference between S10 & S24 tho ... they are the same size (if anything one could say S24 has gotten smaller)?
\
Did you per change purchase the vanilla S20 but the plus S24 model? :)
I have big hands, so I had the opposite problem. To this day my favorite was the galaxy note 4 because he was a beefy boy ❤️
Same! I really liked the Note 5 cause I worked for Sprint and got it for free at release. Until the whole exploding batteries thing...
I’m still on my 2016 iPhone SE. It’s slow and buggy but for my purposes it’s great and the screen is only 10cm (4in).
I still have mine as a secondary work phone. Love the size and format of it in general, although I think I'd still prefer a phone slightly bigger (~10%) and with a higher resolution (1080p?) display, mainly for media consumption.
Outside of that, I second the slow and buggy comment (although in my experience this has been mostly with Microsoft Teams, which is a buggy mess regardless)
consumers in general wants bigger phone, market follow along
sadly, small phone is a niche now
There's more to it than that. Big phones are more marketable and have better profit margins. It's not all consumer preference. Kinda similar to cars actually
Yea you have a point but also the bulge on my pants has never looked bigger
The Oppo X8 (non-Pro) is probably the smallest flagship with a top level chip and good camera currently made but it is only available in a few markets.