The vanishing of the small high-end smartphone

I just want one with a removable battery and a headphone jack...

Meanwhile me, a 6'4" man with big ass hands, is finally happy that most phones actually feel big enough for my fucking hands for once

Have an older iPhone we use at work and I almost can't type on it with how small the fuckin screen is lol

But yeah, options are nice, make small screens more often ya nerds

I don’t get what the obsession with big phones is. Is it that most people really want big phones or that companies can charge more for them?

Most of the issues people have with Android are one and the same. Compared to a decade ago, there isn't any choice any more

Years ago, there was almost too much variety at times, and manufacturers would experiment heavily alongside Google. Some phones had physical keyboards, some had no headphone jacks, some had no physical buttons at all, and they came in either stupidly small or (at the time) freakishly large.

Now, for some reason Android feels very sanitized, even the shite that manufacturers stick on top of stock to make it feel like it's their product and not Google's. There aren't even that many manufacturers any more, and unlike the past when Android embraced being a bit different, it all feels like everyone is trying to follow Apple instead of Android leading the pack....

I have small hands and I hate that I have to jerry rig my phone with shit to just reach the upper part of it.

also, interesting side-by-side comparison of the Zenfone 10, the iPhone 15 and the Pixel 8 from the article:

Anyone who wants to keep this convo going, check out !compactphones@lemmy.world

i want a smartphone, that i can hold securely
while still being able to reach the entire screen.

i have pretty big hands, and even i cant reach the upper left quarter of my phone (pixel6a) without letting go of the left and bottom edges.
its ridiculous

My favourite phone ever was my first android phone in 2010, the Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini (e10i). Every time I’ve had to buy a phone since, I’ve looked around trying to find something similar, but it feels like no such thing will ever exist.

This is what is pushing me towards a flip phone. I just don't have a need for a 6.7" phone or bigger.

Mainstream ruined everything. Like it always does.

Thank for bringing this up. I'm currently using a Samsung Galaxy S10e. I mostly use the smartphone from my pocket:

• listening to podcasts with earbuds on;
• running with Strava on;
• working in the garden with music on;
• checking messages with my smartwatch on;
• driving my car with Android Auto on;
• ... . Of course I also use my smartphone itself for messaging, shopping online, banking, ordering takeaway, ... . And a larger screen would definitely be more comfortable in these cases. But having a larger smartphone when I'm currently using my smartphone while it's in my pocket, is a step back. In fact, for use at home I still have a Samsung tablet to have a bigger screen die when that's more useful. When I would switch to the SG S23 version, it seems that the dimensions of the new device are quite similar? Dimensions: S10e: 5.60 x 2.75 x 0.31 inches (142.2 x 69.9 x 7.9 mm) S23: 5.76 x 2.79 x 0.30 inches (146.3 x 70.9 x 7.6mm) Zenphone 10: 5.77 x 2.68 x 0.37 inches (146.5 x 68.1 x 9.4 mm)

So as long as the basic version of the SG s-series is sold in the above dimensions, I'm not worried 🤞

I'm a cyclist in the city so for me, a smaller size phone is ideal to keep it secure in a pocket. I got gifted a Pixel 6 about a year ago (wanted to stick with the Pixel 2!) and now I always need to bring some sort of pack to put it in.

I’m on the iPhone mini and I wish I could get a smaller phone. It is way better than the tablets my family carry!

On the other end there doesn't seem to be any phablets either. they are all weirdly long screens.

It's not really that complicated, people expect high end phones to have all day battery, which is hard to do with a small phone.

For myself, phone screens have finally gotten to the perfect size for my hand, and a good size to actually use them for stuff comfortably.

But there should always be variation and choice, for the other users in the market!

There was actually a meme I saw a while back where a guy was wielding a sword and shield. Except the sword was an iPhone and the shield was a samsung phone.

At this point I'd rather buy a super outdated smartphone. They're small enough for my hands and pockets, dirt cheap and still functional, and most of the good games left on Android are only available on those old versions.

Not just small phones actually big phones as well. Remember the Huawei P8 Max, Sony Xperia Z Ultra or Mate 20X?

Phones these days only seem to exist between 6" and 6.8".

I just want Sony to make another XZ1 Compact but with updated internals. Keep the screen size, camera shutter button, 3.5mm plug and make it thicker to squeeze in either wireless charging or a slightly bigger battery.

and one of the driving forces behind the design of the Palm Pilot was that it had to fit in a shirt pocket …

I'm currently using a Samsung flip 5. I have it set up to use all my main apps on the outer screen, so I can just have a small screen. Then I have the option to open it for apps that I might want to be on a larger screen.

It's working out pretty well. Some days I never even use the inner screen.