Bigger and bigger smartphones: planned obsolescence?

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joeekaitis

joeekaitis

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As I make my rounds at my IT support job, a common sight emerges: big smartphones with spider-web cracked screens.  You don't need to be a structural materials engineer to know that the bigger and thinner a smartphone is, the thinner and more fragile the screen.  Add in the cumulative effects of pressing hard on a pseudo pressure-sensitive screen and you've already doomed the screen to an early demise.  A common occurrence is the big phone in a guy's front pants pocket that turns 90 degrees (landscape orientation) and bends just enough across the leg to crack the screen when the dude sits down.  Time to buy a new one!

 

Seems Apple knows that because their current lineup drops the iPhone SE and nearly bridges the gap between iPhone and iPad with the iPhone XS Max.  The iPhone 7 is currently the smallest and most pocketable but it's so thin and slippery to hold like all iPhones that it, too, seems engineered for multiple replacements.  Yes, a case makes it easier to hold but does nothing to strengthen the screen.

 

Reaction on the web ranges from "Apple can't be THAT dumb" to "Don't be surprised if they're already planning a triumphant return".

 

Time will tell.  Keeping my iPhone SE until it no longer gets iOS updates.
 
I work as a software engineer in an office with 30 other software engineers, and I can confidently say that no one has shattered phones. Some people just don't take care of their devices (or appliances!)

Regarding Apple, don't forget that many Android devices don't receive software updates any more as early as one year after release. It's a total crapshoot when a new device comes out because the support varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.

You may be pleased to know that iOS 12 is reported to be way faster than 11 was, and it supports all the same devices. I'm glad they put some work into optimization and refinement instead of just charging ahead with new features.
 
 
I don't want a big phone ... as Joe discusses, the problem of not fitting in a pants/jeans/shorts pocket.  I have a 5, only because Debbie gave it to me after one of her husband's updates.  She gets max-protection Otterboxes for all their phones.  This one was originally a green shell and black cover.  It was worn and the charger socket cover eventually broke off so I replaced it with a sand shell and slate cover.
 
Thankfully iPhones are not getting thinner anymore, they've been progressively getting thicker since the iP6S. I have an 8+ and it's a pretty big phone, about the same footprint as the new XS Max. I've managed to avoid doing anything to it, I take it on hikes, bike rides etc. 

 

I couldn't stand the bugginess of iOS11 anymore so I installed the iOS 12 GM on my 8+ and iPad Pro 9.7 yesterday, which is what will be released to everyone on Monday. So far so good! As for the mess that 11 was, part of me thinks that Apple made it like that on purpose so people would think that 12 was a huge upgrade, because in reality they made very few feature changes from 11 to 12 and iOS 10 before it was very stable. 
 
I went out yesterday and bought the last iPhone SE Best Buy had in stock locally (they said). I've never had an iPhone before -- too expensive -- but things just never clicked between Android and me. So far, I'm really happy.

I wouldn't want one of those washboard-sized things even at half price.
 
The people who like the larger iPhones tend to also use their iPhone and not a computer. Personally when I was given the option of a 6+ I chose the 6 because I felt the + was just too big. I can’t use the 6+ one handed well, as my thump can’t reach all the way across the screen! I like the size of the 6, much bigger gets to be a bit nuts. I do try and take care of my phone, as it is a very expensive device, but I also am not under the delusion that I won’t drop the thing, it has had an otter box on it since before it left the store. I think the screen size thing overall is more of a ploy to the older phone user, if the other performance improvement wasn’t enough to lure you in maybe more screen will? If they can do more than just implement the current and ever improving technology into the phones to make this new one seem better in every way they will. These phones if taken care of will last much longer than the 2 years that is the most people tend to keep a phone before trading it in these days. My phone is almost 4 years old, I have had the apple store replace the screen once after I dropped it, the phone was only a few months old at the time... I feel the old flip phones we got free with our Verizon family plan back in the day started falling apart one year into the 2 year contract period, I felt that was a ploy to use low quality to rope you in for a new phone at your cost halfway through the contract period!
 
I went from an IPhone 7+ to an IPhoneX-Really like it-the device is all screen.No more "home" button.Replaced with a white bar on the screen you swipe to serve as "hone" works VERY well-and like the face recognition!Saves a lot of typing passwords.
 
Well, it's been a few days, . . .

 

. . . and now the buzz is that Apple's iPhone lineup minus the 6, 6s and SE might produce a short-term sales boost but could hurt Apple in the long run as they no longer offer an entry-level phone to build a new customer base.  Along with all this gentrification comes less practicality.  Some insist there's no such thing as hi-fi Bluetooth and even the Lightning to 3.5mm adapter compresses the audio bandwidth.

 

Love him or hate him, Steve Jobs always tried to keep the product range as wide as possible.  Tim Cook, it seems, is more obsessed with fashion over function, affordability and usefulness be damned.

www.businessinsider.com

Apple's $1,000 iPhones are turning it into a luxury brand — and it could lose a whole generation of customers

Apple's move to raise its prices with its new iPhones could boost its near-term revenue — but imperil its future.
www.businessinsider.com www.businessinsider.com
 
"Jobs always tried to keep the product range as wide as.

Sorry but that's just not correct. One of the things Jobs in best known for in marketing circles is paring down the product lines from a dizzying array to a simple consumer/pro, portable/desktop lineup.

www.businessinsider.com

This Is The Super Simple Chart Steve Jobs Made To Save Apple From Extinction

A pivotal chart played a crucial role in Apple's resurgence, showcasing the power of data in business strategy.
www.businessinsider.com www.businessinsider.com
 
I know the audio complaints about the lack of a headphone port, but the thing is the audio coming out of the built in headphone port was nothing but the same digital stream run through a DAC to convert it to analog for use in the headphones.
 
Big Phones

I see a lot of coworkers with these mega phones now have to have a linked wristwatch to be able to respond to it without removing it from a pocket or purse. I guess the phones are too clumsy to handle when ringing...

Malcolm
 
Sig: "Typos- are NOT intentional & couldn't be edite

Don't forget, those who carry those big phones, needing their power to be just as portable! So, you now have these chargers, that are in the long-run ALSO gone have to be charged, hence spending their time stationary, while their phones, w/ their likely heavy-use also draining during then!

Happy w/ my teeny-weeny iPhone SE--at one point, needing the service call to India, which my wife w/ tons more patience than I, handled, whereas that (months ago when we had that (temporary) power outage) would be where I would have broken-down & resigned my self to just getting a NEW phone...!!!!

-- Dave
 
A parting thought . . .

 

If Apple were to re-introduce a pocket-size iPhone, they could simply call it iPhone as they've done with the MacBook and iPad.

 

The re-launch image could show a tight close-up of a hand pulling it out of the pocket of  a pair of slightly distressed jeans below a black turtleneck shirt.  The tagline:

 

The original vision.

Even more visionary.
 

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