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I expect smartphones to look more like the Pro Controller tradeoffs than the joy cons. The issue with replaceable batteries is you need the extra space for the
by rtkwe 3mo ago
I expect smartphones to look more like the Pro Controller tradeoffs than the joy cons. The issue with replaceable batteries is you need the extra space for the battery structure so unless phones grow they'll have lower capacities. There's also IP ratings, phones have pretty good IP ratings these days often surviving drops in puddles etc where none of these products have any official IP rating to preserve when adding doors etc for replacement batteries.
- braiamp 3mo agoI'm baffled that we still are thinking that we want thin phones. We have a gigantic camera bump that would be removed if the phone was thicker. Who wants a razor in their pocket, like really?
- ProfessorLayton 3mo agoNot only that, but if phone batteries were user replaceable, they could be sold in multiple capacities. So people that want "thin" phones can keep their camera protrusions, and the people that want more battery capacity could get a pack that allows the phone to sit flush on a table. Literally win win win.
- rtkwe 3mo agoYou say that like it'd be a simple process to accommodate the different thicknesses of battery..
- ProfessorLayton 3mo agoI'm not sure what you're trying to say? The replaceable battery is either thicker, or it isn't. There's not much to accommodate. This is already a thing for some [dedicated] cameras like the Canon EOS series.
- rtkwe 3mo agoA thicker battery would need a new back built with a hump or standoffs across the whole back to increase the overall thickness to match the new larger battery thickness...
- ProfessorLayton 3mo agoCorrect. This used to be done before on flip phones, and is still currently being done for dedicated cameras. This is a solved problem and not an issue.
- rtkwe 3mo agoA modern cell phone is very different from the old flip phones and SLRs/large dedicated camera. Resealing modern phones after upgrades/repairs is one of the harder parts of the whole process with fiddly little sealing glue gaskets to maintain IP ratings.
- ProfessorLayton 3mo agoAgain, solved problem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairphone_6 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairphone_6
- astafrig 3mo ago'Solved' by having measurably worse ingress protection than leading smartphones?
- ProfessorLayton 3mo agoYes, this is solved. Samsung makes rugged IP68 phones with user swappable batteries that are thinner than an iPhone 17 Pro when factoring the camera bump [1]. It's kind of comical how accurate this comment is https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48807174 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48807174 [1] https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_xcover7-12784.php https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_xcover7-12784.php