193

Small Phones are Dead and We Killed Them (www.youtube.com)

submitted 2 months ago by Blaze@lemmy.zip to c/android

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[-] unknowing8343@discuss.tchncs.de 115 points 2 months ago

As a small phone lover, here's the thing: we don't consume as many phones or as many services as (general) big phone people.

It's not only about the size of the community. It's that our phones are tools generally at our service and not the reverse.

Hopefully Linux phones are not so far away from usable in the next couple years.

[-] dandroid@sh.itjust.works 45 points 2 months ago

Hopefully Linux phones are not so far away from usable in the next couple years.

I said the same thing in like 2013. :(

[-] GenderNeutralBro@lemmy.sdf.org 17 points 2 months ago

It seemed more likely back then than it does today. Ubuntu and Firefox were both developing mobile OSes around that time.

What's the closest thing to a viable option nowadays?

[-] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 7 points 2 months ago

I think a Pixel running Graphene is the closest viable option. Out of the pool of bespoke built to run GNU/Linux phones, it might just be the PinePhone Pro. It's the one suffering the least from critical existence failure.

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[-] TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

Plus it looked like Web Apps were gonna become huge.

I know the words "web app" send some on Lemmy into a frenzied rage, but they'd be amazing from a platform agnostic perspective.

Imagine if the biggest barrier to entry for new smartphone OSes (app support) was gone. It'd be huge.

But seeing it as a threat to their business models (don't get that 30% cut if it's not through the App/Play stores), Apple and Google have had pretty shitty support for them.

If a Linux phone was out today and had good hardware and software, it'd still fail just like Windows Phone and BlackBerry OS did. WebApps would give it a strong chance though.

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[-] bitwolf@lemmy.one 9 points 2 months ago

RIP Ubuntu Edge

They got so close to the Kickstart goal

[-] morrowind@lemmy.ml 42 points 2 months ago

Linux phones aren't gonna help, the issue is the hardware

[-] ReversalHatchery@beehaw.org 10 points 2 months ago

Unfortunately it does not look like as if linux phones would be developing anywhere

[-] Flax_vert@feddit.uk 8 points 2 months ago

Isn't Android Linux?

[-] lemming934@lemmy.sdf.org 18 points 2 months ago

Linux is often used to refer to a family of operating systems including Ubuntu, Debian, fedora, red hat, ect., which all use the Linux kernel.

However, GNU/Linux may be a better name for this family of operating systems, since they all use GNU components and (to varying extents) embrace the philosophy of the free software foundation.

Android uses the Linux kernel, but not GNU components, and do not embrace the philosophy of the Free software foundation.

Stalman, the man who founded GNU and the free software foundation published his thoughts on this:

https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/android-and-users-freedom.en.html

[-] TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago

Yeah, but it's not like a typical Linux installation on a PC would be. You can't just install a Flatpak application or anything like that. It doesn't use many of the GNU core utilities that most other Linux distros use, and doesn't use a mainline kernel.

People that ask for Linux phones know Android is Linux.

It's just a lot more concise to say than "I want a phone with an open bootloader and hardware fully compatible with a mainline Linux kernel. I want to have a phone that can run a Phosh/Gnome Mobile/Plasma Mobile UI and on the backend work in a similar way to how desktop Linux would."

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[-] wingsfortheirsmiles@feddit.uk 31 points 2 months ago

Praying the Xperia 5 VI is a bit more compact that the previous iteration. That and Sony actually start supporting their services for at least 5 years -_-

[-] Positronic 9 points 2 months ago

It probably is if the rumour about them switching to a 19.5:9 resolution is true. It'll still be larger than the S24 and Pixel 8 because of the top and bottom bezel but height should decrease by a couple of mm.

[-] warm@kbin.earth 7 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Yeah, the lack of software support made me disregard the Xperia completely (well and its price), which is sad because it is otherwise a great phone with actual useful features that other manufacturers have removed.

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[-] warm@kbin.earth 29 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

I think he means normal sized phones, instead of the 'phablets' we are surrounded by now. I still think the ~6.1 inch screen is the perfect size.

[-] ramble81@lemm.ee 56 points 2 months ago

6.1” is too big. I miss the 4.7-5.1” range that they had on the iPhone Mini for example.

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[-] Swarfega@lemm.ee 28 points 2 months ago

MKBHD's video titles are so click baity now

[-] chetradley@lemmy.world 16 points 2 months ago

It's annoying but I get it. If you want to make it or stay big on YT you gotta play the game, and the majority of people eat up click-baity titles and obnoxious thumbnails.

[-] Swarfega@lemm.ee 5 points 2 months ago

I don't disagree but it's still a shame to see a well established channel needing to go to such lows.

[-] chetradley@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago

ALL HAIL THE ALGORITHM

[-] Pantherina@feddit.de 28 points 2 months ago

"We"

[-] Atelopus-zeteki@kbin.run 7 points 2 months ago

I used an iPod touch 4G thru 7G as my 'phone'. WiFi was available enough where I live that it was all I needed. And if I was off in the woods somewhere, I was ok not having service, and the intarwebs instantly answering my every curiosity. I tried to keep it small.

[-] ProdigalFrog@slrpnk.net 25 points 2 months ago

There is at least the Unihertz Jellystar, which is a fairly nice tiny phone. Personally I'm likely stuck with Pixel phones because I'm a big fan of Graphene OS, otherwise I'd likely pick one up after my Pixel 4a fails, which might be awhile, since it's still going strong.

[-] neocamel@lemmy.studio 9 points 2 months ago

Never heard of the Jelly Star! $200 bucks?! I just ordered one.

[-] harry315@feddit.de 15 points 2 months ago

Fucking awesome phone. Been my daily driver for a week now.

Typing is horrible, tough, and for anything serious (browsing, streaming...) you will want a bigger screen and general more build quality. Camera, sound quality, screen are all screaming low end.

Super fast charging because the battery is tiny, sill good SOT because the screen is tiny too.

Feels damn good to be able to use and hold your phone one handed in almost any orientation you can hold your arm in.

Keyboard: AnySoftKey and a Compact layout (2 keys, 1 button) is very helpful.

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[-] Omega_Jimes@lemmy.ca 23 points 2 months ago

The death of small phones is why I'm so committed to my flip 4. The space it takes up in my pocket or bag is so much less than any "regular" phone.

[-] MicrowavedTea@infosec.pub 41 points 2 months ago

Pocket space is only half the problem. The other half is one-handed use and the flip is huge when opened.

[-] Omega_Jimes@lemmy.ca 10 points 2 months ago

This is true, and honestly my biggest gripe with the phone. I don't wear small mitts, and I can only comfortably reach 3/4 of the way up the phone. This is exacerbated by the fact that phone application design is in a very top-centric stage right now. I wonder if there's a way I could extend the android nav bar to take up the top 1/4 of the screen...

[-] MicrowavedTea@infosec.pub 8 points 2 months ago

On Samsung devices there is an accessibility setting that gives a smaller one-hand screen when swiping down from the bottom bar. But that just feels like a waste of space when you could just have a smaller screen.

[-] machinaeZER0@lemm.ee 4 points 2 months ago

That's available on Pixels as well - I use it a lot even on my smaller 4a. Very handy in a pinch!

[-] Ottomateeverything@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

I know it's not everyones cup of tea but..

I ended up buying a Pixel Fold for the Fold aspect. There's an added benefit that it's really short when folded so I can reach the entire screen one handed. It's heavier and thicker than a slate phone, but I actually enjoy the folded experience way better than other phones.

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[-] aniki@lemm.ee 20 points 2 months ago

I'd kill for a sub-6" phone with a physical telephoto lens.

[-] redcalcium@lemmy.institute 15 points 2 months ago

Because there is no demand, display manufacturers don't produce small phone displays anymore. And because there's no small display in stock, phone manufacturers have given up on producing small smartphones. Technically, you can contract the display manufacturers to restart production of small phone displays, but no one seems to be interested in taking the upfront risk.

[-] 1984@beehaw.org 12 points 2 months ago

Haven't watched the video but he is one of the reasons and a strong one. He has really big hands and has been pushing flagship devices since forever.

[-] folkrav@lemmy.ca 8 points 2 months ago

I have really big hands too, and even with those, really big phone sizes are just not practical, IMHO. Unless one has giant NBA player tennis racket sized hands, past 6” to 6.2”, you just can’t comfortably hold your phone and reach every part of the screen without shifting it around all the time.

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[-] tigerjerusalem@lemmy.world 7 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Meanwhile, the Galaxy S line:

Seriously, the Zenfone 10 and S24 have the same size in practice. I don't know what the hell he's talking about.

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this post was submitted on 18 Mar 2024

193 points (88.1% liked)

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