9 points

A small phone with flagship features are not happening.

To get a smaller phone, you have to give up screen quality, camera quality, fingerprint scanners and other flagship features.

I just want a small flip phone that acts as a smartwatch paired to my main phone. Nobody makes that either.

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13 points

One less camera is fine, the other things make no sense. Good screens don’t take more space, and fingerprint readers are tiny.

It doubly makes no sense when you consider that we did have small flagship phones until recently.

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1 point

I just want a small flip phone that acts as a smartwatch paired to my main phone. Nobody makes that either.

This exactly.

I’ve been dying for a refreshed Galaxy Folder but with Samsung Dex.

Give me a basic flip phone, my essential Android apps, and key me use the powerful processor docked in desktop mode like a laptop.

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8 points

I used to have a Motorola Droid Mini, which was just a Droid Maxx with a smaller screen and battery.

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1 point

The mini had a terrible TFT LCD screen.

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1 point

Loved the build quality of that phone.

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1 point

The zenfone would like to have a word with you.

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2 points

Oh? Does it do some of the things I’ve come to believe are impossible?

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1 point

I mean take a look at it’s spec sheet, i love mine it’s a really solid phone. Only thing i wish it had was a micro sd slot and ir blaster.

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13 points
*

I just want a small flip phone that acts as a smartwatch paired to my main phone. Nobody makes that either.

I’m sorry but this sounds even more fucking stupid than smartwatches*

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6 points

Yeah, it’s a specific use case thing that wouldn’t make sense for most people.

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3 points

I could see it being good for construction or something, keep your main phone in a bag or whatever while you have a paired flip phone on ya. If it gets destroyed due to whatever reason itd be easier to replace.

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3 points

Actually, the Xperia 5 series from Sony is “small” in comparison, so is the Pixel 8 and they all have the same hardware specs - except the zoom lense. Which is a damn shame, because my Pixel 6 Pro is just a tad too big. I wouldn’t wanna go back to my Xperia Z1 Compact, tbh. 4,3" is not big enough anymore…

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9 points

Smart phones killed small phones. Really, a small smart phone runs into usability problems.

I loved my old Kyocera slider, but all it was good for was phone and SMS.

1" screen, phone is about the size of a credit card.

https://a.co/d/0xKoRVp

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7 points

“Small smart phones run into usability problems” for you.

Samsung S4 Mini was fantastic for me. Still own a couple. I’d be happy with an updated version.

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1 point

Well, yeah, I have giant, manly hands. :)

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2 points

Lol, I didnt downvote you, BTW. That was someone without a sense of humor!

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2 points
*

weeps in dead battery

I had it flashed with LineageOS and would still legitimately use it as a daily driver if its charge would last longer than it takes for me to disconnect it from the charger and bring it outside my doorstep.

I had also bought a replacement battery but it was still so old that it barely made any difference.

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1 point

Bummer.

Try some other batteries out there. Mine will still chew through even a good battery (Verizon version, no lineage for me).

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8 points

2G is dead in most places

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0 points

It still exists, just not for us consumers. How else they gonna force us to use the newer networks that cost so much to build.

2G is now available only to commercial entities using it for data connections for remote reporting stuff. Oil fields still use it for SCADA reporting, for example.

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28 points

What irks me about the larger phones is that there is so much wasted screen real estate. The phone doubled in size, but can only show me half the number of items on my shopping list?

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8 points

I just wish phones would get thicker, instead of longer. So they can fit beefier batteries.

I’d love to be able to charge my phone like twice a week

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40 points

That sounds more like an iPhone problem than a large phone problem. You have complete control over both text size and display scaling in Android.

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11 points

Google and Android aren’t perfect but fuck man I love Android.

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3 points

Buttfuck Man, my favorite super hero of all time. Can’t wait till he gets his own movie.

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14 points

I think the main smartphone market is kind of like the market for cars. The only people that can afford to buy them, can afford to keep up heavy consumer traffic, are the ones who are convinced they need to swap to the top of the line model with some sort of trade-in payment plan, where they want every new trendy thing, and every piece of bullshit technology that’s not going to last even to the next flagship model. Basically, stupid people who are rich and are insecure about it. I’m certainly vulnerable to that to, just as I’m vulnerable to the unbearable lag on even just like a 6 year old phone, which should really not be that old, and then security updates and support are always a concern, I suppose. I think maybe the solution, individually, might just be to root my phone, or install some linux alternative operating system, cause I don’t wanna keep up with this bullshit anymore. I’m trapped in a world of large 19:9 and 21:9 smartphones, unusable with one hand, and with screen space that’s useless 90% of the time. I’m stuck without aux ports, and without any physical style keyboard, no nothin. I also want stuff like the DS stylus port and the flip camera they had on the zenfone 7, that shit is cool.

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12 points

Every 5th grader I know has a phone (I’m a parent not a creeper). So it’s not just the rich and stupid. Cell network companies give these things away under 2 year plans that most can afford. And it’s not just two year plans, my kids have $50 phones from Motorola that are +6". I think most people like a big phone and it’s only us few that want to see sub 5" phones.

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7 points

It’s not so surprising they all have +6" phones, since there are no smaller options available, irrespective of price.

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24 points

On the contrary, poorer people tend to buy oversized phones since that’s the only device they have

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4 points

This exactly. If you’re spending anywhere from €250 - €350 on a phone and this is a big spend, you’ll want to keep the device for longer and have a bigger screen because it seems like you’re getting the most value for money.

The majority of phones in the world which make up the bulk of sales are exactly these types of phones: Samsung A07, Xiaomi, Realme, TCL, Motorola etc

Which is why I keep saying about Flip phones that if the OEM wants to see more sales, they need to price them in this range. Not at 1000 bucks+. At that price it will remain a niche product for the few.

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49 points

Personally, the Pixel 5 was the perfect size and weight for a phone.

No bulky cameras. No thick chassis. No glass adding pointless weight. Very usable as a one handed device. Symmetrical bezels.

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3 points

The s23 is basically the same size as the pixel 5.

https://m.gsmarena.com/size-compare-3d.php3?idPhone1=10386&idPhone2=12082

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0 points
*

I just don’t get on with Samsung devices. The software bloat ruins their great hardware for me. That’s an amazing looking phone though.

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4 points

5 years ago, I would’ve agreed, but it’s pretty good today

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1 point

S23 will cut your palm with its sharp edges though

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4 points
*

Currently using an Essential Ph1 running Lineage (Android 13) and I’m about to switch to a Pixel 4a of all things, because of size, weight (its plastic), cheap as hell (so I can keep a hot spare around and do testing for a low cost), and it has one of the highest NIT ratings of any unlockable phones.

The 5 looks good too, just not as bright, slightly larger, and a little heavier.

Edit:spelling

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1 point

My son has the 4a and it’s a great phone. Same size as the Pixel 5 too.

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1 point

From what I’ve seen online, the 5 is trivially larger (like 1mm each way).

What drives me to the 4a is the brighter screen, slightly lighter, and plastic. So when I drop it (not if), it’ll bounce better.

Also, they’re cheap as hell from Walmart of all places, about $100, lol. So I can afford 2 or 3 of them for the cost of a newer phone that has performance and features I really don’t care about.

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10 points

Typing this from my pixel 5. The best sized phone ever. I think imo the use case for big ass 15 feet phones is a little overkill. Most people are just buying it because it’s “premium”.

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6 points
*

The best sized phone ever.

Steve Jobs called the first release of the iPhone with its 3.5" screen, “the perfect size for human hands”.

Say what you want about Steve’s other claims, he was probably fairly right on that one. Humans have opposable thumbs and the average range of said thumbs when touching something cradled in the palm without external movement is about 3-4 inches.

And yet I’m typing this on a “moderate” sized Samsung A71, and to tap something on the top of the screen I need to use my other hand or shift the phone downwards in my grasp to do so.

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5 points

I’m still using mine.

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1 point

I still have mine on my desk but it has a screen issue so it’s unusable. I still pick it up just to feel it. It’s just so good in the hand.

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2 points

I recently busted out my Pixel 5 (currently using Pixel 7) to try out Lineage OS and absolutely love how it feels in my hands. It’s light and easy to reach all of the screen with one hand. Man I miss that phone.

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1 point

Nice. And with Lineage its fast, root and add Kernel Adiutor to really tweak both performance and battery life.

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2 points

My perfect phone would be a galaxys s5 with modern camere processer and compatibility with graphene os

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1 point

Pixel 3 and Samsung S4 and j series were good

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3 points

Pixel 5 is great, but 4a was perfect

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2 points

Nexus 5 was a good size for me, this 4a is too big to be comfortable. If rather have the bezels back, too. Much easier to use without 100% screen coverage.

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2 points

Yeah, its super annoying that you can’t grab phones without touching the screen

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1 point

The day mines dies I might just not have a phone lol

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3 points
*

Yeah I wish my 5a was a little smaller, it’d be perfect. Still been a great phone so far. But my screen is scratched to hell because I forgot to put a protector on it.

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0 points

Add a screen protector - it can hide the scratches.

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