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I was itching for this announcement, not because I want to buy an iPhone, but because this will finally mean other manufacturers will start to make compact phon
by andrepd 7y ago
I was itching for this announcement, not because I want to buy an iPhone, but because this will finally mean other manufacturers will start to make compact phones.
It drives me up the wall that I simply cannot find a reasonably competent phone (i.e. mid/upper range from the past 4 years) which is not absolutely fucking huge. It's insane that the "phablet" standard from ~5 years ago is now not even the new standard, but the only standard.
- jdjrirkfkfk 7y agoConsumers voted with their wallet. The market for tiny phones is tiny. Apple can do it for the hipster factor, but that doesn't work with other producers.
- fergie 7y agoAgreed. In terms of form the iPhone 5 was best. The last iphone that could be used one-handed.
- close04 7y agoIf they'd have minimal bezels, for comfort, in an iPhone 5 body we'd have about ~5.2" available for the screen. Unfortunately keeping the bezels for the fingerprint reader, earpiece, and front camera (~60% screen to body ratio) means that while it would fit better in small hands, the small screen may not give a great experience with today's content (sites, apps), or our eyes. My old iPod Touch 5th gen. was quite a shocker for everyone who nostalgically reminisced about the good old times of small screens. I guess it depends what one expects from the phone.
- rock_artist 7y agothat's something many people would've hoped. but Apple product cycle is re-cycle. so the R&D of this SE allows going to target price while keeping their expected revenue. Sadly as I'm not getting any younger my SE 4" becomes harder on my eyes and my decision of having 16GB at the time got it to be filled. though it's really the best phone and most reliable phone I had. (that's btw a pro for using the iPhone 6s -> 8 design including fixes for bendgate/audio ic/etc at least I hope so)
- Eric_WVGG 7y agoa 5.4" iPhone has been consistently rumored for this fall, would have an "6/7/8 Plus" screen in your 5-series form factor.
- jason0597 7y agoWhy not put the fingerprint reader at the side or at the back? That would help a lot
- CydeWeys 7y agoI never understood why Apple kept putting it on the front. It's so much better on the back like it is on most Android phones. You can unlock the phone without having to adjust your grip on it, which is great. This home button/fingerprint reader combo is taking up so much precious real estate on what is a small device, and I just don't get it. It seems like bad design to me.
- tass 7y agoProbably to allow unlocking without lifting it off the surface it's on.
- jimbokun 7y agoWhich is why Apple created Face ID to solve this problem.
- close04 7y ago> on the back like it is on most Android phones The jury is solidly still out on the "better" part. There's no consensus between customers on this topic. Manufacturers who placed the fingerprint sensor (and power button, earlier) on the back, or even the side despite the clear disadvantage of having a tiny sensor, did so to make the bottom bezel slightly smaller, not because of proven better ergonomics. And given the opportunity they switched back to the front, under the screen. Most also chase thinness at the price of smaller batteries which says nothing about the soundness of the decision. > This home button/fingerprint reader combo is taking up so much precious real estate The button is there because the design comes from a time when the screens were small so on-screen buttons were a waste, and the body needed to be large enough to accommodate everything else. This phone is an iPhone 8 with a better SoC. It's not a new design or even a redesign. The design isn't bad, it's old. And it's old so it can be cheap. They achieved a worthwhile result a pricepoint where at the very least it provides exceptional software support and a current generation SoC. There are few phones that serve that segment (OP5 was pretty much the last one in the price range - good SoC, OKish support, regular old bezels). You can freely sacrifice this for better screen to body ratio phones if that quality is more appealing.
- smeyer 7y agoThe screen on the old iphone SE (i.e. the iphone 5 body) still seems fine to me when using it with today's content. About a year ago I upgraded from one to an iphone XR but on the occasions I use the smaller phone it still seems fine.
- abruzzi 7y agoTo me this is the opposite of what I want in a small phone. It is less the physical size, rather that since 99.9% of all my usage is one handed, I need my thumb to be able to reach anywhere on the screen. With the ability to have minimal bezels, my preference would be to shrink the phone to meet the screen, not to enlarge the screen.
- jpxw 7y agoI am operating my iPhone 7 one-handed as we speak
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- joshontheweb 7y agoNot ergonomically if you have an average hand size.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- jhrmnn 7y agoI have above-average hands and I do operate iPhone 7 one-handed. But reaching top left corner with my thumb is a bit of finger gymnastics.
- radec 7y agoexcept that 4.7" is not exactly compact
- McTossOut 7y agoThe main reason I haven't dumped my XZ2 Compact for a Palm Palm is my paranoia around owning a Chinese designed device. Largely the same story for those waves of Android Lollipop "smart watches". I'm very unhappy with the market for mobiles, it seems manufacturers have no balls, and are clueless about what I want / sensitive to what carriers are willing to sell en masse. In a phrase, the stupid shitty financing options carriers provide seem to define the market for devices (supply, credit, marketing), not what actually makes a good device. Shame all around.
- kevin_thibedeau 7y agoA lot of decent smaller phones are available in the developing world. The silliness is the market segmentation with frequency band restrictions that could all be handled in firmware.
- danieldk 7y agoWhat other manufacturers released a smaller phone when Apple released the original SE?
- pge 7y agoI read somewhere (can't find the source now) that the reason for this was that the Apple processor gave them an advantage in being able to have that small a form factor and still have good (actually great) battery life. Without the energy efficient processor, a larger battery was required which led to larger phones.
- yabatopia 7y ago> I was itching for this announcement, not because I want to buy an iPhone, but because this will finally mean other manufacturers will start to make compact phones. There are plenty of compact and competent phones. A Samsung A40 for example is barely larger than this new iPhone SE, but has a 5.9 inch display. A friend wanted a smallish smartphone and she's quiet happy with the form factor.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- MattRix 7y agoThere's no way the iPhone SE or the Samsung A40 can be considered compact. They're still huge.
- orangepanda 7y ago> A Samsung A40 for example is barely larger than this new iPhone SE, but has a 5.9 inch display A major pro of having a smaller phone is being able to reach anywhere on the _screen_ with just a thumb. While A40 and SE may have the same physical form factor, the former does not achieve this.
- graeme 7y agoYup. This is the central point that big phone people don't understand about small phone people. It isn't phone width. It's screen size. Usually when using a phone one handed I'm not even touching the other side.
- jdietrich 7y agoMost Android distributions (including Samsung's) have a one-handed mode that enables a gesture to shrink the screen into one of the bottom corners.
- findthewords 7y agoThat is an ugly hack. We can do much more.
- koheripbal 7y ago...as someone who absolutely loves big phones - I am on the other side of this argument. I read and watch shows on my phone constantly, and screen size is a major factor for me. I specifically buy clothes with larger pockets to accommodate. I agree that choice would be better - but I imagine that economies of scale sometimes means having only one size for everyone if you want to keep them cheaper than the competition.
- goatlover 7y agoI never understood watching stuff on a phone given tablets, laptops, PCs, smartTVs and even VR headsets. But then again, I take my laptop everywhere and use it for everything when there's a choice between the two.
- wyre 7y agoNot everyone has the necessity or ability to carry around a laptop with them everywhere. The convenience of a 6.5"+ screen is great if you are away from a laptop.
- goatlover 7y agoTrue, but for watching video? Is the need that common away from home/office/workspace? I get YT videos, which often don't need as big a screen, but movies and tv shows on a phone?
- scarface74 7y agoHave you actually compared the view of a phone that is inches away from you face to a Tv that is a few yards away from you? Besides that, have you thought that everyone’s lifestyle may not be just like yours?
- goatlover 7y agoI don't watch tv a few yards away, but point taken people have different lifestyles and needs. I should have rephrased the context to be my surprise that the big phones came to totally dominate the market, when it makes them harder to handle and more cumbersome to keep on your person. I didn't think consuming content would completely trump that, not with the simultaneous rise of tablets. Choice is good.
- crispyambulance 7y agoIt's called "IPhone SE" but does that mean it's the same height and width as the previous SE?? That's the key thing about the SE and before it the 5S-- something that can be operated with one hand and that can fit in a pocket. It's clear from the photo that it doesn't have a camera optic that's flush with the back, nor does it have that cool pseudo 1960's Philips-like metal case with flat beveled sides.
- smeyer 7y agoIt looks like this is on the same chassis as the iphone 8 (5.45" in the longest dimension) whereas the old iphone SE was on the same chassis as the 5 and 5S (4.87" in the longest dimension).
- chrisrickard 7y agoUnfortunately it's the same size as the 8 https://www.apple.com/iphone-se/why-upgrade/ https://www.apple.com/iphone-se/why-upgrade/ My love of SE comes from its small the size... So i'm disappointed.
- saagarjha 7y agoI guess Apple disagrees with you definition of the SE :(
- spurgu 7y ago> It's insane that the "phablet" standard from ~5 years ago is now not even the new standard, but the only standard. Utterly insane. I replaced my SE with a Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact yesterday. It has a 5" screen and decent specs (2018 flagship). About as small as you can get a mobile nowadays, sadly. And wow how I've missed Android, the UX is soooo much better in most aspects. I can't believe I was stuck with iOS (as an experiment) for almost 1.5 years. Reason being that I hadn't been able to find anything below 5" in the Android world.
- colechristensen 7y agoAs a 95th-percentile-sized human, the large phones have been quite appreciated, there is quite a lot of frustration when everything in the world is the wrong size, whatever your size. Now if we could do something about airline seats, sedans, and home furniture.
- Jldevictoria 7y agoI'm in your boat here. I have pretty large hands, and I've always regretted not getting the XL size of my Pixel 2.
- spurgu 7y agoAgree kind of, although airline seats, sedans and furniture haven't been trending towards one end of the spectrum over a number of years. And I think it sounds like a reasonable idea to offer cars with swappable (or well-adjustable) seats. Airlines already offer seats with extra legroom, as well as business class depending on your needs. The first touch devices might've been around 3.5-4" (just guessing here) but they've since then been constantly growing to where 6" is nowadays considered normal. How far can you going up in size? It's definitely not comparable to finding the size of a seat, as a phone's "right size" depends on how you intend to use it. There are hundreds of phone models on the market but they all seem to revolve around price points (and hence features/specs). Why not expand the range size-wise as well while at it? I have fairly large hands and I don't mind manhandling a 6" "phone" but I simply do not want to carry one in my pocket. I can't imagine I'm alone on this. Largest phone I've ever had was 5.5" and that one constantly fell out of my shorts pocket when sitting down and now with the 4" iPhone SE I've grown rather accustomed to the form factor and am willing to trade off usability (more difficult, precise typing required) for it. And then you have people with small hands. Edit: Easy one-handed usage is also important to me.
- bebna 7y agoI switched this year to the Samsung Note 10, because it was SMALLER than the previous budget "lite" phone I got as a short term replacement for my broken down Z3 compact.
- cactus2093 7y agoI know a few people that still have the SE, and for all of them it was mainly about the size. That and a belief that they didn't want to be glued to their phone all the time. So the benefit was a combination of the smaller size being more ergonomic, plus the fact that less content fit on the screen was actually a pro for them because the extra friction encourages wasting less time on it. It does seem weird that instead of continuing to serve this market, Apple assumes everyone wants their same large form factor and it's only a matter of price. On the other hand, maybe we're just in a bubble. Trying to avoid consumer tech even though you could easily afford it is a rather niche, privileged view of a subset of people that work in tech. Maybe outside this bubble there's a much larger group of people who do want the big, more up to date designs and price is the only consideration.
- hosh 7y agoThe 5S and the SE for me was mainly about being minimalist. Size was a big part of it, but it was also that the SE was a really good design that should last for years. Up until this announcement, I was going to have the battery replaced on the SE. The bigger issue is if Apple will continue to support the 1st gen SE with iOS. My wife prefer the bigger phones. She has aphantasia. I don't, and often hold visualizations of things I can't see. It eventually dawned on me that people buy those things to attach to the back of their phone because you _couldn't_ safely hold and operate the bigger phone with a single hand without that attachment.
- Angostura 7y agoI believe it has been announced that iOS 14 will support the same phones as iOS 13, has it not?
- AnonC 7y agoWell, iOS 14 will only be formally announced by Apple in WWDC, which is in June. Apple hasn’t mentioned that release name anywhere yet. So any announcements you may have seen on device support would be speculations or rumors.
- 7y ago
- mtzaldo 7y agoTry the pixel 3a
- coldpie 7y agoI have a Pixel 3A and it's huuuuuuuuuuge. I hate it.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- jrochkind1 7y agoI wish it meant that, but i'm not sure. When the first SE was still in production, other manufacturers had already mostly stopped having anything small in their lines, no?
- cmrdporcupine 7y agoMind boggling to me that 4.7" is compact? I miss smaller phones, for sure.
- skocznymroczny 7y agoCompared to Android, where it's hard to get anything below 6.2" it's very compact.
- oops 7y agoThe Palm Phone[1] looks pretty cool and certainly ticks the compact box. It's almost enough to make me consider Android but I'll probably just keep using old SE until it dies. 1: https://palm.com/products/palm-unlocked https://palm.com/products/palm-unlocked
- throwaway123x2 7y agooo this is fantastic. Def gonna keep it in mind when I'm ready to change phones.
- 1996 7y agono nfc, no qi wireless or I would have purchased it already
- ip26 7y agoIt would probably be my ideal phone if the battery life was not reportedly atrocious.
- dickfickling 7y agocan confirm from first-hand experience. It lasts about four hours on a charge with minimal usage.
- 205guy 7y agoI'm with you on the size, which is why I still have the SE myself. It also bugs me that no one is showing a comparison of the new SE to the old SE, so here is an old article I found, 2nd photo is the 7 (5.5 in), 6 (4.7 in == new SE), and old SE (4 in). https://www.imore.com/iphone-6s-vs-iphone-se-whats-different-and-which-should-you-choose https://www.imore.com/iphone-6s-vs-iphone-se-whats-different... So the new SE is bigger, but still acceptably small for most people. It seems like Apple couldn't bring themselves to make it any smaller. And at this price with these features, it will be my next upgrade (in 2-3 years), and I predict it will sell like hot-cakes.
- kevin_thibedeau 7y ago> So the new SE is bigger You can fit a bigger screen into the same space with the bezels removed. There is no compelling reason to have a 4.7" screen when a 5.something" can fit in the same form factor.
- lrem 7y agoExcept this doesn't seem to be the same form factor, not even close.
- GordonS 7y agoI did think it was odd to have such a large, ugly bezel on a contemporary phone, especially one from Apple. I absolutely want a smaller device, and the trend towards phablets becoming the new "normal" really annoys me. But why does this have to be so damn ugly?!
- Joeri 7y agoApple shows the comparison on their site: https://www.apple.com/iphone-se/why-upgrade/ https://www.apple.com/iphone-se/why-upgrade/
- znpy 7y ago> but because this will finally mean other manufacturers will start to make compact phones This.
- dorkwood 7y agoI suspect the trend is to do with the fact that the majority of the population use their phones as cameras now. A larger screen means larger photos and videos. As long as people are using their phones to browse Instagram, I don't see manufacturers going back to smaller form factors.
- odiroot 7y agoI have the same sentiment. I held tight onto my Xperia X Compact until the battery gave way. Looked around and found literally no replacement for it, out of all manufacturers on the planet. In the end decided to go for XZ2 Compact which was already outdated at the purchase date. I haven't seen any new phone in that class since mid-2018.
- rapind 7y agoNow if I could just get one without a Camera...
- lolaso 7y agokjnk,
- octocop 7y agoThis has me furious, i've used the other iPhone SE before and the size is perfect.
- m1k1 7y agoThat's why I'm still eyeing Galaxy S10e
- bartwe 7y agoI have one, it's nice, wish it didn't have a bixby key though. It could be a bit smaller for my taste.
- fabiandesimone 7y agoHave you tried the Google Pixel 3a?
- hoorayimhelping 7y ago>but because this will finally mean other manufacturers will start to make compact phones. Why does it mean that? They could have been building compact phones already and they weren't. Not sure why they're going to start now when Apple is clearly signalling to the industry that people don't want to buy small smartphones.
- runjake 7y ago> It's insane that the "phablet" standard from ~5 years ago is now not even the new standard, but the only standard. Is it? The market shifts to where the money is. There apparently isn't enough money to make it worth the OEMs' time. If there were, they'd capitalize on it. While I abhor huge phones, I see more Plus model iPhones than I do the "smaller" models, in the wild.
- yodsanklai 7y ago> There apparently isn't enough money to make it worth the OEMs' time It seems to be working from Apple though
- headmelted 7y agoRight but this isn't that. This is the new iPhone 6/7/8 upgrade in the same chassis (more or less). This is not a new compact iPhone like the 4/4s/5/5S.
- copperx 7y agoAs someone who has an iPhone 6 I see little reason to upgrade. FaceID might have changed things, but is there any reason to upgrade my phone besides a slightly faster CPU?
- headmelted 7y agoProbably a better camera, new battery, significantly better performance from the chip. If you’re happy enough with your phone as is then you’re good for now. I suspect you’re exactly the target audience for this phone though (happy enough to trade cutting edge specs you don’t need for better value - I’m the same). In any case it’s probably good to know there’s a very familiar drop-in replacement for your existing phone when it gets unusable that isn’t going to break the bank though, right?
- perl4ever 7y agoI replaced a Pixel XL with a later generation Pixel that was almost exactly the same size.
- simonblack 7y agoI spent 20-odd years enjoying how how mobile phones went from being huge 2-3 pound 'bricks' all the way down to the Nokia 100 gram 'chocolate bars' of the mid-2000s that fitted beautifully in my shirt pocket. Then I watched in disbelief as phones began getting more and more swollen every year and got too large to hold comfortably in one hand. (or fit in your top pocket) Time and again the phone-shop salesmen would look sideways at me when I said I didn't want the latest and greatest offering, but one of the older and smaller phones. My current phone is an iPhone 5S that I have kept for several years.
- barbs 7y agoCan recommend the older iPhone SE. Same size and shape, upgraded specs, latest OS.
- kabacha 7y agoHow is this phone compact with 50% body-to-screen ratio. There are already compact phones like samsung's s10e which is a modern phone. Honestly this looks like an april fools joke.
- tomc1985 7y agoThe forces that made the "phablet" standard are the same thing that makes software today so terrible -- "Let's support our biggest and most profitable use case and screw everyone else!" This is not what tech is supposed to be about. There's supposed to be options, so all types of users can feel comfortable and at-home. Instead we force all users into a couple of comically-bad stereotypes based on market research pulled out of bullshit sales figures and a focus group's collective asses
- quickthrower2 7y agoLuckily, there is the Android ecosystem, so you get choice and don't need to get a massive phone.
- saagarjha 7y agoAndroid is 1. something completely different and 2. not great when it comes to small phones, either.
- quickthrower2 7y agoYes, but the original post talks about the `"phablet" standard `, in such a way as if there is no alternative. Apple doesn't make a tonne of concurrent iPhone designs like other manufacturers. One reason to choose Apple is to not have to choose the model, just get the latest (or in my case the oldest model that doesn't fall into a pile of shit running iOS). I've had areally nice small android phone, most of them sucked though, it will depend on the mfr and luck. I prefer apple overall because I'd trade choice for the 'just works'. I've never had a situation where I cannot dial on an iPhone, but in other-mfr land it seems quite common.
- SimeVidas 7y agoYou would think that at least one of the countless Android phone makers would try to produce a premium device in the sub-5-inch segment, but no. Not a single attempt. It must be impossible.
- globular-toast 7y agoSony has been the only company doing them, but the Z3 Compact was the last great one. I have an X Compact now and it's not as good. I've never had a big phone. One of the main reasons for getting a smartphone for me was the favourable size (easier to fit in pocket). The huge ones have no advantage. I use my PC for a big screen.
- jimbean 7y agoThe Galaxy S10e is a really nice compact android phone just a smidge larger than this SE. Its great.