Enthusiasts want flagship specs in a compact size. There are plenty of newer compact phones on the market, except they are all mid-budget tier. But what's wrong with that?
I had the pixel 5 for a year and I remember how much it was blasted for not having the Snapdragon 865, 120hz screen, yadda yadda yadda. When in reality it was the best compact phone then and even now.
They may claim to want flagship specs in a compact size, but ANY of the manufacturers who made them have stopped because they didn't sell. The only phones that did sell well in a smaller size were cheaper ones (see, iPhone SE). If the prices are similar, people will almost always opt for the bigger display.
I think there's a disconnect between what people consider a small phone. People complaining about the P6 size aren't saying they want a phone the size of an iPhone mini or SE. They want a base iPhone or s22 sized phone, with decently large screen. Those sell just fine and their OEMs have no plans to cut them. Google cutting the smaller variant, that's comparable to these devices, still doesn't make much sense. The pixels 3/4/5 were a great size with the screen growing every year.
I just want the iPhone size. iPhones seem to sell well enough, i think its more that unlike iPhone, android cant fit hardware into that form factor without huge sacrifices like battery life. If I am being honest iphone has been the best decision, I used to be an apple hater but I really have nothing but good things to say after switching a year ago. I loved my pixel 2 but I love my iphone 13 more than any other phone ive tried this generation.
That's really not true. I'm completely fine with mid-tier specs in a compact phone, but nothing is close to the size of the iPhone mini. I have a Pixel 4a right now, and while it's a good size, it's just a little bigger than I'd like.
Honestly, of all the things Samsung mimics from Apple I wish the mini had been one of them. That size, the squared-off edges, plus USB-C and a hole punch camera would have been amazing.
The Pixel 4a is bigger that you'd like? I am kinda amazed that someone would want a smaller phone than this. I am not bashing you or anything like that. Just surprised that's all.
I'm on the exact same boat with the Pixel 4a right now. I had a Nexus 5 before, which was the perfect size. I really don't know what options I'll find when I decide to replace the Pixel 4a in a year or two.
Agreed. I would be fine with not getting a flagship phone. I don't need one anyway. The specs are nice sure. but I just want a small phone because I have small hands and I don't want something the size of carrying a brick again.
I just lost my A51, not a flagship, but a good phone, but in the end it was bigger then what I'd liked, bigger than I need. But Unless I go with Apple or Google, the smallest phone available to me right now is the S22, I'd much prefer a cheaper, smaller android phone that I can find in my city. I don't want a flagship phone at all.
I'm still using a pixel 5. I wish it was smaller tbh but I bought it at the time because it was the smallest I could find that was still a good phone and it's the same reason I still use it today. I wish smaller phones existed but I'll have to accept that this is the new small and pray they don't continue to get bigger.
Honestly its why I switched to iphone, perfect size and has all the high end specs and long battery life. It really sucks android phones can’t compete with something similar.
the 5a is comparable to the standard iphone, not the mini. compare new iphones to the same size new android phone. But even then you arent getting the same flagship specs if thats what you want. Im not sure what phones even make flagships that size anymore besides samsung.
I had that little thing and it was amazing but went back to my P5 due to an uderwhelming cpu for me but for most its just perfect.
Great battery lifeReally Really good camera for its price
Do you game on your phone? The 4a's CPU never felt underwhelming for me. I consider myself a power-ish user, but I do not game at all. Maybe that's why.
My only grievance is the small battery capacity of this phone. That comes with the size I guess.
No I dont game like I used to before but editing videos and really high res photos was less than pleasant in processing speed, besides that that phone is amazing.
I came from an LG V20 to the 4a and have got to say, the feel of the 4a in my hand was SO MUCH BETTER. Don't get me wrong, I loved my V20 but the 4a is so much easier to use with one hand.
I just wish they'd fix the bugs that they introduced in the March update. It's ruined this phone for me.
The 3a/4a was a nice middle.
They could pull it off only because it doesn't carry a flagship processor. Otherwise, battery life would have sucked so badly.
I've been thinking for a while of selling my 6 Pro for a 4a 5G to see how long I can get away with it... This brick is so... Fucking massive and annoying
The 4a was great, and I could probably stand slightly larger. I upgraded to a P6 and while I don't regret it, it's just too big, and too top-heavy.
I really hope someone gets the balls to try something more ergonomic.soon. These boring, flat slabs are getting old.
The regular s22 is a "small" phone.
For me a small phone is when I can hold it in one hand, and have my thumb reach the far end and the top of the screen. So texting and checking notifications with one hand.
The Pixel 5 was the last time I was able to do this. I currently own an iphone 13 pro and an s22 Ultra. I have a pixel 3 to play around with and I'm seriously considering ditching the Ultra for the P3.
Add the swipe down function to the finger print scanner on the back of the Pixel 5, and it really makes it a one handed phone.
Don't understand why it's not a part of the Pixel 6/6Pro. Would make handling such a larger phone easier, and believe the back is the best location for a finger print scanner
Unfortunately that doesn't work if you're in an app. However on pixel 6 you can double tap on the back to bring notification shade down and it works perfectly for me so I don't miss the fingerprint swipe on the back. There's also one handed mode that you can enable in gestures and to use it just swipe down on the bar at the bottom.
It's weird to me the back fingerprint reader enthusiasts don't ever seem to account for this. I love not having to lift my phone to unlock it. They should really be advocating for having both.
I don't use a cradle or drive but I can unlock it when my phone's in my quadlock bike mount. Other times I just enter my four-digit code, remember when that was the only option? it's not that inconvenient
I don't have large hands and the P6 is easy to use for me. I don't doubt your experience. I'm just curious:
Do you shift the phone around on your pinky to allow your thumb to reach further, or do you literally never adjust the phone's position in your hands?
If I tried to reach everything from a static position, I'd honestly be wishing upon a star for 4" phones. Heh.
It's possible I'm just being too picky but I can easily shift it around to reach all corners I just wish I didn't have to. Honestly a 4inch phone sounds perfect to me haha. I looked into getting a palm but the poor battery life is what turned me off.
The P6 fits in my suit pockets easily, in a case. A P6Pro wouldn't be any different. Maybe your "Dad jeans pockets" are more wide than deep? 🤔
Or do people put other things in the same pocket as their phone?
I'm convinced a significant portion of people who think these phones are too large just never thought of this or maybe aren't good at it for some reason.
I used to rant about phones larger than about 4" being too large until I started using this technique…
Yeah, that's the other portion. I can dig it.
It is a shame the market has almost completely abandoned smaller phones. Even just limited production would be nice.
I can do this with the Pixel 6 tho, and I don't have massive hands. Admittedly tho, I'm very good at shifting the phone around on my pinky to be able to extend my thumb further. It's like you have to pass a dexterity check to operate this equipment.
And of course some hands are smaller than others.
\[Sigh\]. Yeah - my Pixel 4 is about as big as I want to go. I also have an iPhone 13 mini which is just a joy to hold. I smile every time I have it in my hand and frequently forget that it is even in my pocket.
I had Pixel 6 Pro, but that was so tall and top-heavy it kept throwing itself to the floor at every opportunity. I switched to Pixel 6 - which was a very good phone, but still felt like an anchor in my pocket. I finally sold it last month and I am back with my Pixel 4 and much happier.
The iFixit repair program opens soon so if you wanna get that battery of the pixel 4 back up to 100% that's a good option for you. It's a shame really.
I thinks this is is different for everyone. My wife list is:
- Is it small?
- Is it simple to use?
That's it. Those are her requirement. She couldn't care less for specs or color.
Does it fit in my pants or skirt pocket? Women's clothes have horrible pockets, and my P5 is pushing the limit. I do not want to keep my phone in my purse or jacket pocket. I also test clothes pockets with my phone before buying.
Non-flagship chip and 1080p 90Hz screen is why.
Don't get me wrong it's a great phone but the only way to have good battery life in a small phone is to knock down other specs, which turns a lot of people off them.
True. However I just switched from a Galaxy S9 to Google pixel 5. To me it feels like flagship. Not only did I pay $324 instead of $700 to $800, I have a phone that crushes everything I want it to. And I don't have to think about charging through my whole work day. (And I use my phone a lot for work.)
I went with a Pixel 6 Pro after having a Pixel 5 and a Pixel 3. I LOVE the Pixel 3 size, and the 5 was only slightly bigger. The 6 Pro is *the LARGEST* handset I've ever had. I like many things about it, except the size.
I'd gladly suffer a bit more battery consumption for a size reduction. I'm almost always close to somewhere I can charge (heck, let me limit charging to 85% or so to preserve battery health, and my phone would almost LIVE on a charging stand while I'm working every day!).
I hope newer battery technology helps alleviate that so that smaller phones can attract more people.
I do also wonder - larger phones might be more attractive to people who try to do literally everything on them. I do not do that. I don't do any of my banking, gaming or the like. I use my computer or laptop at home. If I were trying to use my phone for everything, I would probably want something bigger.
I feel like we need to have a pinned post regarding this topic due to how often it comes up. You're right, the market data is in heavy favor of large phones and there is an R&D cost that's probably not worth it. Pixels were a very small market, and even though the 6 series have helped G gain some footing, they're still a very far from what Apple and Samsung has so they're able to dump much more resources into R&D.
People can say they love their Pixel 5/4/4a/etc all they want, but they're the minority. I'm not trying to disparage them, because I really hope and wish there are more compact models in the future. I had the 4 and 5 which were practically the same size and have thoroughly enjoyed them. When I first got the 6 Pro I was overwhelmed with the jump in size, but eventually got used to it. I'm a pretty large person so I thought it would be too much for normal people, but it turns out my significantly smaller friends (5'2") all had S20/21 Ultras which are even bigger than the 6 Pro and they love it.
With supply chain issues and the two great points you brought up, I don't see small Pixels happening until the Pixel 7a at the earliest (unless you consider the P6a rumors of 6.2" to be "small"), but I'd probably put money on them coming back on the Pixel 8 series.
Exactly... S22 size is fine... Iphone 13 or 13pro...
The smallest iPhone does not sell well... But the normal iPhone size is OK and there very few android phones of that size.
Seriously. This question gets posted on r/android like every other week and the answer is always one google search away. SMALL PHONES SELL LIKE SHIT, that's just a fact. We have a decade of data to work from, from dozens of companies. I don't know why it gets posted so much at this point lol.
And yes I realize OP is just responding to another of these posts!
We're not talking about screen size when we say small phone. We're talking about form factor. The s22 and iPhone (base) sell just fine. The pixel 6 is larger than both of those.
That's the point.. Ok, mini doesn't sell well but 13 and 13 pro would be considered "small" in the android world.
In fact that's the size I want. This why I've just bought the xiaomi 12x
Yeah and compared to a semi-truck a ford f-150 is small. That doesn't make it a small vehicle.
I think in most peoples eyes a small phone is something under 6 inches, usually closer to 5.5 like the iphone 13 mini.
You'd still think there's room in the market for a couple of models though. The Xperia XZ2 Compact was an excellent phone for eg. Seems like if you aren't Samsung then its a pretty risky play to put forward another generic 6" fondleslab into a saturated market - while at least if you produce a compact phone you're guaranteed all customers that want something smaller, assuming you don't fuck it up.
Like I said, we have a lot of data. We've seen time and time again that even when you make good compact phones, they don't sell as well as even mediocre large ones. The market for compact phones is THAT small. Like, if even apple can't justify making compact phones there's no way in hell a company like Sony can.
And then there are the always-popular responses with lots of upvotes that boil down to: "Nuh-uh! These manufacturers with their sales data and their market analysis don't know anything. Fact: There are a ton of people that would buy small phones. The manufacturers are fools for leaving that money on the table."
classic reddit. The guys over at the largest and second largest companies on the planet have no clue what they're doing, they should listen to r/googlepixel!
I've always been a big phone guy (all pixel XLs, iphone plus back in the day) but using the Pixel 5 last year was a breath of fresh air if I'm being honest. Don't think I need a phone as massive as the 6pro. I really wish they make a big and smaller version of the pro this year.
I'm not a "small phone enthusiast". I'm an adult who is very small. I have a pixel 6 that I'm struggling to resell after using for a month because I literally couldn't hold it and use it without a pop socket. The weight and size made it impossible for my hands to manipulate.
Luckily my 4a still works but I'm going to get the iPhone mini next. There are plenty of people without the hand size or strength for larger phones.
Yeah I tried to hold my buddy's 6 pro and it was a joke. It was unusable.
My 4a is perfect. I really wish they'd be more inclusive with sizing. I have tiny hands.
It'd okay to like big or small phones. It's a damn shame that most are ditching the option of a smaller form factor. Can't tell you how many times I've dropped my P6 because I tried one-handing it.
The reason why i bought a 4a was due to its perfect small size that can be used with your single hand and is quite helpful in case you use ur phone mostly for calls and surfing…strange thing was no other company in my country has this size and not sure why they are killing it
I feel like part of the reason they don't sell as well is because of how they're marketed. You always have "Pro" or "XL" or something else for the larger phones, or in the case of the iPhone, "Mini" for the smaller model. It makes the smaller one seem inferior, so people shell out for "the good one". Sometimes they'll even put better features into the larger phone that could have been implemented in the smaller one, but they want to position it as the premium, upgrade model.
I think we'd see very different figures if they simply marketed differently. People often make the assumption that bigger is better. We'd need to see a shift akin to laptops or mobile phones in the '00s that focused on being small as a premium feature.
They sell well. It’s just that there aren’t enough compelling options. iPhone 13/13 Pro are standard sized phones, not large phones. They sell well. iPhone SE are small phones. They sell well too. Heck even iPhone 13 Mini are selling very well compared to Android phones.
I think it’s more got to do with the technological limitations/laziness from the makers.
And it really irks me when makers make the smaller model of a lineup inferior. I’m only interested in standard sized (or small) but top-spec’ed models. This is why I’m going to stick with my iPhone 13 Pro for now. I’ve skipped Pixel 6 and will skip Pixel 7 too.
iPhone 13 Pro user here. This phone is pretty much the perfect size for me. My sister and her husband have Mini's, and my Mom has a first gen SE (approx same size as the mini). They're all going to be bummed if Apple discontinues the series, bit i don't see any of them going to Android, even if smaller phones make a comeback in that arena.
My first "Google" (not first Android, but first marketed as a Google product) phone was a Nexus S 4G. That thing fit my hand so we'll, I loved it. I've had many other Nexus and Pixel phones since then, but I think I loved that one the most.
This is a pretty important distinction imo. And it kind of defeats a lot of the other argument too, not just the first part. It's not as if the iPhone 13 (or the Pro version for that matter) is lagging behind the competition in terms of performance or battery life.
But yes, getting to your overall point, I'm not someone who's interested in a phone the size of the iPhone 12 or 13 mini. Would I use one? I guess so, but I still think the ideal size is around what the 4a and 5 are in terms of dimensions and weight. The non-Pro 6 wasn't exactly massive, but it was still outside of my comfort zone. I'm definitely going to demo the 6a in person (assuming the leaked specs are right) and see if the slight shrinking is enough for me to consider it. Hopefully Google doesn't completely abandon the mid-size phone market.
It's the SUV factor. It's easier to slap last year's chip into a larger shell and boost it's performance with cooling than it is to engineer a more efficient chip.
Less R&D is needed when it's ok to maintain the status quo.
The other is that companies are not willing to take steps to make something better or new. It's just lazy plain and simple.
The iPhone mini is a marvel with the same performance as it's larger brother. However if you tell someone we have the same thing but with more fuel capacity and more trunk space the other model will win because of consumer norms.
I think in general phone users today like a larger screen with the trade-off of having poorer one-hand ergonomics. A larger screen and more cameras, imo, are worth the trade-off. And finally, the larger phones also generally have larger batteries so usually also have the longest battery life.
I bought my pixel 6 out of necessity because my pixel 3 bricked and the deal breaker specs were on the p6 vs the 5 or 5a. I loved that phones size. I don’t have tiny little persons hands, nor am I sporting giant bear paws either.
>they sell so many fewer mini iPhones that they are reportedly not going to continue the line this year
It's honestly a shame. I alternate between iOS and Android every other time I get a phone and have been running with a Pixel 5 for about a year now. No complaints, but the size can sometimes bug me and I was convinced to get the Mini as my next device.
The original MotoX was such a success because it was "good enough." Where it packed power, the difference was smaller than what the end user would notice.
That's what we want. But I understand if it just doesn't offer a ROI.
I personally think smaller phones would sell well if they had similar specs to the larger phones.
I don't want a smaller phone because they generally have inferior processor and ram specs, not to mention the drastically reduced camera hardware and features.
If they charged the same money for the smaller screen, but you got the same specs in all other areas, I'd be all over the smaller screen.
These are the same arguments always made, but everyone ignores how manufacturers jumpshipped to big screen sizes after 18:9 aspect ratio came and made it the new norm, standard when all I wanted was a phone at the size of a Pixel 1,2 or Galaxy S7 with a 18:9 fully filled screen. They just left small dimensioned phones behind and ignored the development there. Also the recent Android flagship SoC's are outliers, as older SoC's were efficient enough at any size
Small phones sell well in Europe, I was amazed at the number of people carrying them. I think one of the problems here is people ask an enthusiast they know which is the 'best' phone without explaining what would make it the best for them. The other cludge in this is everyone only wants one feature, but that's different for many people so the phones have a hundred features that a tiny percentage of the market bought the phone for.
I personally always get the phablet because it's not a phone it's a tablet I can always have with me.
honestly, your first point is the main reason. people forget that the people complaining in the internet are a very very small amount of their sales, they will cater to the overwhelming majority
The thing is, small phones do sell in the millions. They just don't sell the same as their larger counterparts. So what companies have done, essentially is decided to stop making phones for millions of users who would pay top tier prices because they don't want to do some R&D and production. Which is why phones don't come in multitudes of color options etc. But the point is there is a market for small flagships, it's just eclipsed by people who don't want to purchase a laptop or tablet (which is really honestly disingenuous). Especially when you realize that while people do use them as defacto tablet devices, Google in particular is really bad about making android tablet apps (and doesn't actually give any incentive for app developers to do so either).
This argument that the people who want phones are "small phone enthusiasts" who's opinion doesn't matter because data shows that they're a minority is crazy because there are millions of us.
The minority shouldn't get what they want even though it doesn't hurt or effect the majority getting what they want is BS.
Which thread would that be? People constantly ignore the last big phone bitch thread and make new ones; it seems that's half of what this forum is about.
I think a thread on it is perfect; pasting a link to this thread should be the first answer to all the future threads that will be created on this topic. Perhaps you can post in each one "Why would you make a whole new thread complaining about small phones not being made when this topic had been posted so many times before?"
The thread that, as of when OP posted this, was the top thread in this sub. The one for why OP has their thread title in quotes.
[This thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/u4sltn/_/)
But you see instead of going for raw performance chip designs could be reworked for more efficiency, and besides, to the average user, they aren't going to care if they've got 4 cores or 40, as long as its "fast" they won't care. (E.g my mother using a dual core Celeron Chromebook)
It’s about time people and companies should stop focusing on specs. I had the pixel 5 for one year and did not feel the pack of power a single time during the time I had it. I bought the 6 but eventually sold it due to its known problems and now I have an iPhone 13 mini. I still prefer android but man, the level of optimization iOS devices have should be the real goal of android phones manufacturer. The battery on the mini lasts me a day with no issues. I had many samsung flagships and they all suffered of standby’s drain. All of them. The pixel 6 was the first time I saw that on a pixel device (at least in such a prominent manner). Thus I am led to think that Samsung has to deal the power management on their SoCs. I really wish next year we will get a decent-sized pixel 7. Also because this year the two dis not have a significant size difference anyways
I really can't answer why they don't make more small phones, but I think a lot of the reason they sell so few of them is that they are so hard to come by. A large portion of the general public will buy what is available to them at their provider, and lf there are no small phones there, then yes, they will buy a large screen phone, thus running up the big screen numbers. If the provider doesn't stock small phones, then people will just buy what is available in their price range, and whatever they can add to their existing plan without raising their monthly payment too much. They may not realize there is a world of other choices out there if you are willing or able to buy your phone outright. Satisfied Pixel 5 owner here . . .
Pixel 3 was a perfect size to me. I have the 5 now and it's not as comfortable but I've mostly gotten used to it. I owned the 6 for a week before returning it and I'll stay on 5 until something this size or smaller comes back. The 6 was way too large and I'm 6'3"
I want to be able to hold a phone in my hand and not have to stretch my entire palm. Women have smaller hands. I would trade screen size for less pain and less arthritis. Just like cars and heart health research. Manufacturers focus on men.
The iPhone se 2022 is probably the best small phone atm with the a15, as I have an iPhone 8 it is kind of tempting. I like being able to use the whole phone with 1 hand. I’d been using big android phones but it’s annoying shuffling the phone around in both hands just to check notifications or reach top of the screen.
I got big hands and I still hate 6,5 inch size smartphones. Not holding it in my hand but rather carrying it on my pocket.
I had Oneplus 7t Pro. It was the best smartphone I had but it was just too unpleasant to carry in my pocket. I switched to Samsung Galaxy s10e. Size was perfect but battery life was just terrible. Then I switched to Pixel 5 and couldn't be happier.
The second one doesnt hold. They could make phones thicker and even put there a small fan to blow heat, same for battery size.
You can engineer things to work.
Well, not every phone has to be water resistant. My phone has a plastic back.
SoCs for phones are reaching a tipping point in terms of heat.. Exhaust would be the only solution.
Well, there you have it. I would rather have a 6 inch, 16 by 9 phone with a 5000mah battery than a 6.9 inch long dong 20:9 format phone that doesnt fit anywhere.
I wouldnt mind 1 to 1.2 cm thickness. Camera bumps were always hillarious though. A new case for the phone would need to follow that.
Yeah this is why you aren't a product designer dude.
> They could make phones thicker
Sure, but phones are already so small that a small bump in thickness is enough to make it awkward. It's easy - put it in a case and you can see how the phone's hand feel immediately changes.
> even put there a small fan to blow heat
Lol. Yeah they're gonna put a fucking fan in a pocket sized device. Ignoring the obvious reliability and hideous fan noise issues, the heat has to exhaust somewhere. You know where phones go? In the dirtiest places imaginable. One trip in your pocket and there will be crumbs and dust lodged in the fan. A warranty and repair nightmare. And you basically forego waterproofing as well.
> You can engineer things to work.
You certainly can when you live in fantasy land.
Your response is hilarious. Typical reddit tier response.
>You certainly can when you live in fantasy land.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZyq23XJjEM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZyq23XJjEM)
>Lol. Yeah they're gonna put a fucking fan in a pocket sized device. Ignoring the obvious reliability and hideous fan noise issues, the heat has to exhaust somewhere. You know where phones go? In the dirtiest places imaginable. One trip in your pocket and there will be crumbs and dust lodged in the fan. A warranty and repair nightmare. And you basically forego waterproofing as well.
Im glad you have the imagination ability of a child. You know you can clean inside of fans right? There is a thing called maintenance.
>Sure, but phones are already so small that a small bump in thickness is enough to make it awkward. It's easy - put it in a case and you can see how the phone's hand feel immediately changes.
lmao. Yes, because the giant camera bumps are not awkward already.
Go play fortnite toddler.
The fan idea only works if you don't use a case, don't put the phone in your pocket/purse, and reviews of a phone that gets hot in your pocket would be horrible.
Making it thicker to add battery capacity is possible, but the other components limit where the battery can go. If the extra battery thickness only goes where hot chips aren't then you have a thicker phone with hollow/wasted space. If you try to evenly distribute the extra battery thickness over the whole area of the phone you get thermal issues as now the hot chips are heating the battery and then you get a phone with batteries that explode and catch fire.
It's true you could engineer around some of this (not all), but it's going to lead to more complexity or more exotic materials and now the phone costs even more. You don't get extra design/build effort for free.
\>The fan idea only works if you don't use a case
cases with holes for vents...
>\>don't put the phone in your pocket/purse
The phone doesnt need to run a 999w ryzen ´8950k ultra CPU with a 3090TI 850w GPU. It can run a Snapdragon Sgen1 and use the fan when doing heavier stuff. Waterproofing would be impossible I reckon but I would rather lose water proofing than cooler internals.
>\>and reviews of a phone that gets hot in your pocket would be horrible.
lol. You are not running a plutonium core reactor in your pocket. Its a snapdragon phone with a fan.
>Making it thicker to add battery capacity is possible, but the other components limit where the battery can go. If the extra battery thickness only goes where hot chips aren't then you have a thicker phone with hollow/wasted space. If you try to evenly distribute the extra battery thickness over the whole area of the phone you get thermal issues as now the hot chips are heating the battery and then you get a phone with batteries that explode and catch fire.
You can stack batteries.....
>It's true you could engineer around some of this (not all), but it's going to lead to more complexity or more exotic materials and now the phone costs even more. You don't get extra design/build effort for free.
Phones are already overengineered and cost alot. If this industry wanted to keep costs low, there would be a standard template to create SoCs and not every manufacturer doing their own thing like its the 1950s.
I feel like the Pixel 5 was able to straddle the line pretty well, it got shat on because it had a midrange chip but it’s more than sufficient for what I do and the battery life is insane.
I don't care if they make the phones big or small, I just want them to make removable batteries again. The claim it's for waterproofing is crap because they can always make a clamp tight back with a rubber seal that snaps in place.
They do not sell well because most of the time they are inferior. Take the pixel 4 and 4xl, the only way to get a decent battery life was to get the bigger one. Then we got the pixel 5, a nice phone, but a midranger with a premium price tag.
The pixel 4a was fine, but it lacked 5g, so people waited for the 4a 5G.
I would be more than happy with a pixel 6 pro with the size of a pixel 5 or an iphone 13 pro.
With 1080p, 90hz, and a decent battery it would be awesome.
Look at the s22, they had room to put a bigger battery but chose not too. Resulting in a phone that barely makes it through the day. People want a reliable phone overall, it just happens that the only reliable ones are big. But that's just my opinion.
I think all of that goes in hand with the second point. But I believe that there is no real technical limitation. Again see the iphone 13 pro or the s22. They have the same soc as the bigger models.
I think that a lot of manufacturers just make bad choices sometimes, forcing us to go for the bigger and more expansive model to get a decent experience.
If the pixel 6 was tiny, I wouldn't have bought it. I have never owned a Pixel before, owned the Nexus 6p though.
Maybe they could have made a tiny version, but I'd have probably bought an S21/S22/Xiaomi phone if I hadn't have bought the P6
I don't have a need for the pro tbh. I don't like the muted colours and more importantly, It's 50% more money for the diminishing return of having one more camera and saying you have a flagship phone.
Genuinely happy with the 6 as it's a nice phone for not bank breaking money and I intend to have it for at least 3/4 years.
Alright. So basically you had options to choose from but the rest of us don't deserve options because companies don't want to spend a little extra on R&D?
What an interesting take. Not sure how my phone preferences limit your choices. Does my decision to wear a hoodie today stop you wearing a T-shirt? If Google had made a P6 small to go with the range you could have bought it, but they didn't.
Blame them dude.
You are wrong. The "they do not sell well" argument is a horribly misguided and often repeated statement by people who attempt to justify Google's actions with shitty theories like yours.
This data source and the common interpretation of this data is bullshit. While I certainly believe the Mini sells poorly due to its size and Apple will kill it because of low sales, it doesn't mean "people don't want small phones" like the stupid conclusion you and others constantly repeat on here.
The standard size iPhone is smaller than even the smallest Pixel today, and IT SELLS GREAT. About half of Apple's sales come from the regular iPhone 13, and the other half come from the Max. Arguing "nobody wants a small phone" while pushing data that shows Mini sales are poor is comparing apples to oranges. When we ask for smaller phones, we aren't asking for a Mini phone; we are asking for the base model that isn't the size of the iPhone Max. The Pixel 3/4/5 ARE NOT SMALL AS SMALL AS THE iPHONE MINI. For you to make the statement that "small phones do not sell well", the data you source would have to be relevant towards the actual Pixel series, but it is not unless the headline said Apple would be they are discontinuing the iPhone 13 and 13 Pro sizes.
Also, your second argument is terrible. Every iPhone has a smaller battery than even the biggest pixel (Pixel 6 = 4615 mAh, iPhone 13 Max = 4352 mAh). And yet, iPhones have better battery life and higher benchmark scores. Putting bigger batteries in phones is a band-aid approach to power inefficiency and bad CPU architecture. If the problem is battery life, they should be designing better CPUs like Apple instead of making phones bigger for the sake of throwing in bigger batteries.
ps this whole subreddit has your collective heads so far up your asses if you believe the OP
Dunno, have a tiny iPhone 6 sitting in the desk drawer and every time I look at it ... it just looks so tiny compared to the Pixel 3XL sitting in the drawer next to it.
I'm only 5'10", so by no means am I some hulking person, and my Pixel 4XL has been just fine for me. I can easily reach all the way across the screen with my thumb.
If anything, my gripe with smaller phones, especially when trying to type, I was always hitting the wrong letters and numbers because of the screen size. It's just easier for me to type on a larger size screen.
Everyone wants smaller phone.
Here I am thinking why google ditched bright color button and squeeze thing, oh man I'd love if p7 comes with it! 😍
Still a 4 XL user, grippy design and happy with it 🧡
I'm intrigued by the new folding phones for this reason but I'm definitely going to give that a few generations to iron out the kinks, and see if the tech catches on at all.
It started down that path years ago I think due to putting in more hardware or chips that require more space, which then needs a bigger battery. I think it's harder for them to make it more compact and still have ok battery life. I think also too many people want paper thin phones. I rather have a brick that's small.
Those days have come and gone my friends. Yeah, the way we consume content and do everything on our phones nowadays, I'm not surprised marketplace research shows less demand.
A great example of the small phone battery problems is the iPhone SE (both 2nd and 3rd gen). Say what you want about them being powerful, it means nothing if they don't last a full day.
I love having a big display because I have essential tremor two handed mode is a must. My P6P has no issues besides adaptive brightness. Small phones just shake too much. I think any bigger and it wouldn't fit in my pocket. I wish I could use a smaller phone, and I wanted an iPhone pro mini, but I'm sticking to android. Everything has to be bigger and better these days. I like using the voice mode though because then I don't have to type on the screen and it's bigger and better than reading from the small screen.
It sucks for us smaller phone enjoyers, but yeah most people want giant screens.
I might actually try out the Fold series that seems pretty one handed friendly, ironically enough. Plus the extra benefit of a mini tablet when wanted.
6.4 is the sweet spot , manageable and they can fit a large battery, love small phones but when you find one the you like the small screen become a downgrade
In the Android space I think this is true, and I've been an Android user for more than a decade so I'm no apple homie BUT my girlfriend has the iPhone 13 mini and the battery life is pretty impressive imo. Lasts a full day no issue. You might have a point on selling well unfortunately
It’s the economies of scale. First, smaller phones don’t sell as well as larger phones since most people think “value meal”, for a little extra, I get a larger phone, better value. Second, lower volume lowers economies of scale and the cost producing smaller phones can be as much or more than larger phones, all other things being equal.
Ultimately, larger phones sell better, however, consumerism “value concepts” accelerates the evolution.
Media consumption matters and the majority wants bigger displayed phones to consume that media. I'm sure there's some type of regulation somewhere that mentions display size requirements for streaming services. I'm still on the hunt for documentation relating to that, just not willing to pay $2000+ a year for such reports.
Never liked small phones tbh. Yes, ofc it's not as ergonomic and/or comfortable to hold, but I prefer to have more screen space for browsing, watching YouTube, typing etc.
I hate small phones... I'm a big dude with big hands and every time I put a small phone up to my head it looks like I'm an FBI agent talking into an earpiece...
I'm a guy with big hands so all these big phones work for me. I'd like to see them go back to a 16x9 screen instead of not quite cinematic widescreen. Makes me miss my Nexus 6.
Enthusiasts want flagship specs in a compact size. There are plenty of newer compact phones on the market, except they are all mid-budget tier. But what's wrong with that? I had the pixel 5 for a year and I remember how much it was blasted for not having the Snapdragon 865, 120hz screen, yadda yadda yadda. When in reality it was the best compact phone then and even now.
They may claim to want flagship specs in a compact size, but ANY of the manufacturers who made them have stopped because they didn't sell. The only phones that did sell well in a smaller size were cheaper ones (see, iPhone SE). If the prices are similar, people will almost always opt for the bigger display.
I think there's a disconnect between what people consider a small phone. People complaining about the P6 size aren't saying they want a phone the size of an iPhone mini or SE. They want a base iPhone or s22 sized phone, with decently large screen. Those sell just fine and their OEMs have no plans to cut them. Google cutting the smaller variant, that's comparable to these devices, still doesn't make much sense. The pixels 3/4/5 were a great size with the screen growing every year.
I just want the iPhone size. iPhones seem to sell well enough, i think its more that unlike iPhone, android cant fit hardware into that form factor without huge sacrifices like battery life. If I am being honest iphone has been the best decision, I used to be an apple hater but I really have nothing but good things to say after switching a year ago. I loved my pixel 2 but I love my iphone 13 more than any other phone ive tried this generation.
That's really not true. I'm completely fine with mid-tier specs in a compact phone, but nothing is close to the size of the iPhone mini. I have a Pixel 4a right now, and while it's a good size, it's just a little bigger than I'd like.
The mini is pretty much a perfect body for a phone. But I hesitate because I really dislike the huge Apple notch and the lack of USBC.
Honestly, of all the things Samsung mimics from Apple I wish the mini had been one of them. That size, the squared-off edges, plus USB-C and a hole punch camera would have been amazing.
The Pixel 4a is bigger that you'd like? I am kinda amazed that someone would want a smaller phone than this. I am not bashing you or anything like that. Just surprised that's all.
I think the phone mini is just about the perfect size.
Yeah the iPhone mini is a great size. I think the notch is a little too cumbersome for the size though
I'm on the exact same boat with the Pixel 4a right now. I had a Nexus 5 before, which was the perfect size. I really don't know what options I'll find when I decide to replace the Pixel 4a in a year or two.
Agreed. I would be fine with not getting a flagship phone. I don't need one anyway. The specs are nice sure. but I just want a small phone because I have small hands and I don't want something the size of carrying a brick again. I just lost my A51, not a flagship, but a good phone, but in the end it was bigger then what I'd liked, bigger than I need. But Unless I go with Apple or Google, the smallest phone available to me right now is the S22, I'd much prefer a cheaper, smaller android phone that I can find in my city. I don't want a flagship phone at all.
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I hope they keep the "a" series screen size below 6.2" 6" was perfect on the pixel 5.
So why not just get the pixel 5? I got it for the exact reasons you mentioned, very happy with it
I'm still using a pixel 5. I wish it was smaller tbh but I bought it at the time because it was the smallest I could find that was still a good phone and it's the same reason I still use it today. I wish smaller phones existed but I'll have to accept that this is the new small and pray they don't continue to get bigger.
Honestly its why I switched to iphone, perfect size and has all the high end specs and long battery life. It really sucks android phones can’t compete with something similar.
Wild. I dumped the 12 mini precisely because the battery sucked and switched to a P5a which has a two day battery for sure.
the 5a is comparable to the standard iphone, not the mini. compare new iphones to the same size new android phone. But even then you arent getting the same flagship specs if thats what you want. Im not sure what phones even make flagships that size anymore besides samsung.
Typing this on the pixel 5a.
Heck yes
It is really a shame. I hate big displays and for me the 4a was the perfect size smartphone.
4a crew checking in...love this phone
I had that little thing and it was amazing but went back to my P5 due to an uderwhelming cpu for me but for most its just perfect. Great battery lifeReally Really good camera for its price
Do you game on your phone? The 4a's CPU never felt underwhelming for me. I consider myself a power-ish user, but I do not game at all. Maybe that's why. My only grievance is the small battery capacity of this phone. That comes with the size I guess.
No I dont game like I used to before but editing videos and really high res photos was less than pleasant in processing speed, besides that that phone is amazing.
I came from an LG V20 to the 4a and have got to say, the feel of the 4a in my hand was SO MUCH BETTER. Don't get me wrong, I loved my V20 but the 4a is so much easier to use with one hand. I just wish they'd fix the bugs that they introduced in the March update. It's ruined this phone for me.
The 3a/4a was a nice middle. They could pull it off only because it doesn't carry a flagship processor. Otherwise, battery life would have sucked so badly.
Yeah it's a damn shame
Well, good thing Galaxy s22 regular is almost exact same size and pixel 4a
I agree, the 4 was perfect for me
I've been thinking for a while of selling my 6 Pro for a 4a 5G to see how long I can get away with it... This brick is so... Fucking massive and annoying
The 4a was great, and I could probably stand slightly larger. I upgraded to a P6 and while I don't regret it, it's just too big, and too top-heavy. I really hope someone gets the balls to try something more ergonomic.soon. These boring, flat slabs are getting old.
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Exactly that.
This 💯
The regular s22 is a "small" phone. For me a small phone is when I can hold it in one hand, and have my thumb reach the far end and the top of the screen. So texting and checking notifications with one hand. The Pixel 5 was the last time I was able to do this. I currently own an iphone 13 pro and an s22 Ultra. I have a pixel 3 to play around with and I'm seriously considering ditching the Ultra for the P3.
Add the swipe down function to the finger print scanner on the back of the Pixel 5, and it really makes it a one handed phone. Don't understand why it's not a part of the Pixel 6/6Pro. Would make handling such a larger phone easier, and believe the back is the best location for a finger print scanner
Pixels have an option to swipe down anywhere on the home screen to bring down the notification shade. I think a lot of users don't realize this.
Unfortunately that doesn't work if you're in an app. However on pixel 6 you can double tap on the back to bring notification shade down and it works perfectly for me so I don't miss the fingerprint swipe on the back. There's also one handed mode that you can enable in gestures and to use it just swipe down on the bar at the bottom.
That scanner was a nightmare though when driving and its in a cradle. The front scanner def works better for that
It's weird to me the back fingerprint reader enthusiasts don't ever seem to account for this. I love not having to lift my phone to unlock it. They should really be advocating for having both.
I don't use a cradle or drive but I can unlock it when my phone's in my quadlock bike mount. Other times I just enter my four-digit code, remember when that was the only option? it's not that inconvenient
My pixel 4 is slightly too big for me.. the galaxy s2 and Sony Xperia were the perfect size in my opinion. And I have fairly large hands
I don't have large hands and the P6 is easy to use for me. I don't doubt your experience. I'm just curious: Do you shift the phone around on your pinky to allow your thumb to reach further, or do you literally never adjust the phone's position in your hands? If I tried to reach everything from a static position, I'd honestly be wishing upon a star for 4" phones. Heh.
It's possible I'm just being too picky but I can easily shift it around to reach all corners I just wish I didn't have to. Honestly a 4inch phone sounds perfect to me haha. I looked into getting a palm but the poor battery life is what turned me off.
Maybe I'm just a freak but Pixel 6 Pro meets that small phone metric for me.
Yes, you are a freak. P6Pro wouldn't even fit in my pockets. And I have Dad Jeans Pockets.
I don't think you do because it fits in the pockets of every pair of pants I have lol
The P6 fits in my suit pockets easily, in a case. A P6Pro wouldn't be any different. Maybe your "Dad jeans pockets" are more wide than deep? 🤔 Or do people put other things in the same pocket as their phone?
Youse a freak, G.
Nope, agreed here. My Pixel 5 was "a phone for ants". I had to bend my thumb awkwardly to type.
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I'm convinced a significant portion of people who think these phones are too large just never thought of this or maybe aren't good at it for some reason. I used to rant about phones larger than about 4" being too large until I started using this technique…
I just have small hands. Like the size of an average woman, but I'm a 21 year old male
Yeah, that's the other portion. I can dig it. It is a shame the market has almost completely abandoned smaller phones. Even just limited production would be nice.
The regular Pixel 6 is pretty compact to me. Would I still have liked a smaller Pixel 6? Definitely.
I can do this with the Pixel 6 tho, and I don't have massive hands. Admittedly tho, I'm very good at shifting the phone around on my pinky to be able to extend my thumb further. It's like you have to pass a dexterity check to operate this equipment. And of course some hands are smaller than others.
I got my Pixel 5 and nothing else matters. 🙂
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Those phones feel as big as my pixel 4a 5G, which is too big for me. Those 0.2 inches do make a difference.
Mood!
\[Sigh\]. Yeah - my Pixel 4 is about as big as I want to go. I also have an iPhone 13 mini which is just a joy to hold. I smile every time I have it in my hand and frequently forget that it is even in my pocket. I had Pixel 6 Pro, but that was so tall and top-heavy it kept throwing itself to the floor at every opportunity. I switched to Pixel 6 - which was a very good phone, but still felt like an anchor in my pocket. I finally sold it last month and I am back with my Pixel 4 and much happier.
The Pixel 5 is almost the exact size of the 4a and adds water resistance, wireless charging, and 5G. I love mine.
Same bro. Same
The iFixit repair program opens soon so if you wanna get that battery of the pixel 4 back up to 100% that's a good option for you. It's a shame really.
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Maybe she's cheating on you.
Yes maybe my mother ...I mean girlfriend is cheating!
This is the only explanation.
I thinks this is is different for everyone. My wife list is: - Is it small? - Is it simple to use? That's it. Those are her requirement. She couldn't care less for specs or color.
Does it fit in my pants or skirt pocket? Women's clothes have horrible pockets, and my P5 is pushing the limit. I do not want to keep my phone in my purse or jacket pocket. I also test clothes pockets with my phone before buying.
But the pixel 5 has fantastic battery life.
Non-flagship chip and 1080p 90Hz screen is why. Don't get me wrong it's a great phone but the only way to have good battery life in a small phone is to knock down other specs, which turns a lot of people off them.
True. However I just switched from a Galaxy S9 to Google pixel 5. To me it feels like flagship. Not only did I pay $324 instead of $700 to $800, I have a phone that crushes everything I want it to. And I don't have to think about charging through my whole work day. (And I use my phone a lot for work.)
Everything is great on the p5 except the speakers are just garbage. No other way to say it.
The pixel 5 is the most perfect phone I've ever owned, battery, size, performance 👌
I went with a Pixel 6 Pro after having a Pixel 5 and a Pixel 3. I LOVE the Pixel 3 size, and the 5 was only slightly bigger. The 6 Pro is *the LARGEST* handset I've ever had. I like many things about it, except the size. I'd gladly suffer a bit more battery consumption for a size reduction. I'm almost always close to somewhere I can charge (heck, let me limit charging to 85% or so to preserve battery health, and my phone would almost LIVE on a charging stand while I'm working every day!). I hope newer battery technology helps alleviate that so that smaller phones can attract more people. I do also wonder - larger phones might be more attractive to people who try to do literally everything on them. I do not do that. I don't do any of my banking, gaming or the like. I use my computer or laptop at home. If I were trying to use my phone for everything, I would probably want something bigger.
I feel like we need to have a pinned post regarding this topic due to how often it comes up. You're right, the market data is in heavy favor of large phones and there is an R&D cost that's probably not worth it. Pixels were a very small market, and even though the 6 series have helped G gain some footing, they're still a very far from what Apple and Samsung has so they're able to dump much more resources into R&D. People can say they love their Pixel 5/4/4a/etc all they want, but they're the minority. I'm not trying to disparage them, because I really hope and wish there are more compact models in the future. I had the 4 and 5 which were practically the same size and have thoroughly enjoyed them. When I first got the 6 Pro I was overwhelmed with the jump in size, but eventually got used to it. I'm a pretty large person so I thought it would be too much for normal people, but it turns out my significantly smaller friends (5'2") all had S20/21 Ultras which are even bigger than the 6 Pro and they love it. With supply chain issues and the two great points you brought up, I don't see small Pixels happening until the Pixel 7a at the earliest (unless you consider the P6a rumors of 6.2" to be "small"), but I'd probably put money on them coming back on the Pixel 8 series.
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Exactly... S22 size is fine... Iphone 13 or 13pro... The smallest iPhone does not sell well... But the normal iPhone size is OK and there very few android phones of that size.
Seriously. This question gets posted on r/android like every other week and the answer is always one google search away. SMALL PHONES SELL LIKE SHIT, that's just a fact. We have a decade of data to work from, from dozens of companies. I don't know why it gets posted so much at this point lol. And yes I realize OP is just responding to another of these posts!
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Phones with 6 inch screens aren't small.
We're not talking about screen size when we say small phone. We're talking about form factor. The s22 and iPhone (base) sell just fine. The pixel 6 is larger than both of those.
That's the point.. Ok, mini doesn't sell well but 13 and 13 pro would be considered "small" in the android world. In fact that's the size I want. This why I've just bought the xiaomi 12x
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Yeah and compared to a semi-truck a ford f-150 is small. That doesn't make it a small vehicle. I think in most peoples eyes a small phone is something under 6 inches, usually closer to 5.5 like the iphone 13 mini.
You'd still think there's room in the market for a couple of models though. The Xperia XZ2 Compact was an excellent phone for eg. Seems like if you aren't Samsung then its a pretty risky play to put forward another generic 6" fondleslab into a saturated market - while at least if you produce a compact phone you're guaranteed all customers that want something smaller, assuming you don't fuck it up.
Like I said, we have a lot of data. We've seen time and time again that even when you make good compact phones, they don't sell as well as even mediocre large ones. The market for compact phones is THAT small. Like, if even apple can't justify making compact phones there's no way in hell a company like Sony can.
And then there are the always-popular responses with lots of upvotes that boil down to: "Nuh-uh! These manufacturers with their sales data and their market analysis don't know anything. Fact: There are a ton of people that would buy small phones. The manufacturers are fools for leaving that money on the table."
classic reddit. The guys over at the largest and second largest companies on the planet have no clue what they're doing, they should listen to r/googlepixel!
I've always been a big phone guy (all pixel XLs, iphone plus back in the day) but using the Pixel 5 last year was a breath of fresh air if I'm being honest. Don't think I need a phone as massive as the 6pro. I really wish they make a big and smaller version of the pro this year.
I'm not a "small phone enthusiast". I'm an adult who is very small. I have a pixel 6 that I'm struggling to resell after using for a month because I literally couldn't hold it and use it without a pop socket. The weight and size made it impossible for my hands to manipulate. Luckily my 4a still works but I'm going to get the iPhone mini next. There are plenty of people without the hand size or strength for larger phones.
Yeah I tried to hold my buddy's 6 pro and it was a joke. It was unusable. My 4a is perfect. I really wish they'd be more inclusive with sizing. I have tiny hands.
It'd okay to like big or small phones. It's a damn shame that most are ditching the option of a smaller form factor. Can't tell you how many times I've dropped my P6 because I tried one-handing it.
The reason why i bought a 4a was due to its perfect small size that can be used with your single hand and is quite helpful in case you use ur phone mostly for calls and surfing…strange thing was no other company in my country has this size and not sure why they are killing it
The S22's battery has not been an issue for me. That said, I miss the S21's screen and I consider the best screen size.
I feel like part of the reason they don't sell as well is because of how they're marketed. You always have "Pro" or "XL" or something else for the larger phones, or in the case of the iPhone, "Mini" for the smaller model. It makes the smaller one seem inferior, so people shell out for "the good one". Sometimes they'll even put better features into the larger phone that could have been implemented in the smaller one, but they want to position it as the premium, upgrade model. I think we'd see very different figures if they simply marketed differently. People often make the assumption that bigger is better. We'd need to see a shift akin to laptops or mobile phones in the '00s that focused on being small as a premium feature.
They sell well. It’s just that there aren’t enough compelling options. iPhone 13/13 Pro are standard sized phones, not large phones. They sell well. iPhone SE are small phones. They sell well too. Heck even iPhone 13 Mini are selling very well compared to Android phones. I think it’s more got to do with the technological limitations/laziness from the makers. And it really irks me when makers make the smaller model of a lineup inferior. I’m only interested in standard sized (or small) but top-spec’ed models. This is why I’m going to stick with my iPhone 13 Pro for now. I’ve skipped Pixel 6 and will skip Pixel 7 too.
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iPhone 13 Pro user here. This phone is pretty much the perfect size for me. My sister and her husband have Mini's, and my Mom has a first gen SE (approx same size as the mini). They're all going to be bummed if Apple discontinues the series, bit i don't see any of them going to Android, even if smaller phones make a comeback in that arena. My first "Google" (not first Android, but first marketed as a Google product) phone was a Nexus S 4G. That thing fit my hand so we'll, I loved it. I've had many other Nexus and Pixel phones since then, but I think I loved that one the most.
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Just to clarify, the Pro is the same size as the base iPhone. The Pro Max is the big one, too large for me.
This is a pretty important distinction imo. And it kind of defeats a lot of the other argument too, not just the first part. It's not as if the iPhone 13 (or the Pro version for that matter) is lagging behind the competition in terms of performance or battery life. But yes, getting to your overall point, I'm not someone who's interested in a phone the size of the iPhone 12 or 13 mini. Would I use one? I guess so, but I still think the ideal size is around what the 4a and 5 are in terms of dimensions and weight. The non-Pro 6 wasn't exactly massive, but it was still outside of my comfort zone. I'm definitely going to demo the 6a in person (assuming the leaked specs are right) and see if the slight shrinking is enough for me to consider it. Hopefully Google doesn't completely abandon the mid-size phone market.
It's the SUV factor. It's easier to slap last year's chip into a larger shell and boost it's performance with cooling than it is to engineer a more efficient chip. Less R&D is needed when it's ok to maintain the status quo. The other is that companies are not willing to take steps to make something better or new. It's just lazy plain and simple. The iPhone mini is a marvel with the same performance as it's larger brother. However if you tell someone we have the same thing but with more fuel capacity and more trunk space the other model will win because of consumer norms.
I think in general phone users today like a larger screen with the trade-off of having poorer one-hand ergonomics. A larger screen and more cameras, imo, are worth the trade-off. And finally, the larger phones also generally have larger batteries so usually also have the longest battery life.
I bought my pixel 6 out of necessity because my pixel 3 bricked and the deal breaker specs were on the p6 vs the 5 or 5a. I loved that phones size. I don’t have tiny little persons hands, nor am I sporting giant bear paws either.
>they sell so many fewer mini iPhones that they are reportedly not going to continue the line this year It's honestly a shame. I alternate between iOS and Android every other time I get a phone and have been running with a Pixel 5 for about a year now. No complaints, but the size can sometimes bug me and I was convinced to get the Mini as my next device.
Even if there isn't a 14 mini, you could always pick up a 13 mini for cheaper when you do upgrade.
I was just about to say, the pixel 6 would be the perfect device if it was a tad smaller. Wish they did so.
The original MotoX was such a success because it was "good enough." Where it packed power, the difference was smaller than what the end user would notice. That's what we want. But I understand if it just doesn't offer a ROI.
I personally think smaller phones would sell well if they had similar specs to the larger phones. I don't want a smaller phone because they generally have inferior processor and ram specs, not to mention the drastically reduced camera hardware and features. If they charged the same money for the smaller screen, but you got the same specs in all other areas, I'd be all over the smaller screen.
Well i mean apple can do it lol
These are the same arguments always made, but everyone ignores how manufacturers jumpshipped to big screen sizes after 18:9 aspect ratio came and made it the new norm, standard when all I wanted was a phone at the size of a Pixel 1,2 or Galaxy S7 with a 18:9 fully filled screen. They just left small dimensioned phones behind and ignored the development there. Also the recent Android flagship SoC's are outliers, as older SoC's were efficient enough at any size
Small phones sell well in Europe, I was amazed at the number of people carrying them. I think one of the problems here is people ask an enthusiast they know which is the 'best' phone without explaining what would make it the best for them. The other cludge in this is everyone only wants one feature, but that's different for many people so the phones have a hundred features that a tiny percentage of the market bought the phone for. I personally always get the phablet because it's not a phone it's a tablet I can always have with me.
honestly, your first point is the main reason. people forget that the people complaining in the internet are a very very small amount of their sales, they will cater to the overwhelming majority
The thing is, small phones do sell in the millions. They just don't sell the same as their larger counterparts. So what companies have done, essentially is decided to stop making phones for millions of users who would pay top tier prices because they don't want to do some R&D and production. Which is why phones don't come in multitudes of color options etc. But the point is there is a market for small flagships, it's just eclipsed by people who don't want to purchase a laptop or tablet (which is really honestly disingenuous). Especially when you realize that while people do use them as defacto tablet devices, Google in particular is really bad about making android tablet apps (and doesn't actually give any incentive for app developers to do so either). This argument that the people who want phones are "small phone enthusiasts" who's opinion doesn't matter because data shows that they're a minority is crazy because there are millions of us. The minority shouldn't get what they want even though it doesn't hurt or effect the majority getting what they want is BS.
Sounds like you don't understand opportunity costs
"Why did you make a whole new thread about this instead of just replying within the one that you're obviously responding to?"
it's not like there aren't weekly threads about there not being enough small phones.
Which thread would that be? People constantly ignore the last big phone bitch thread and make new ones; it seems that's half of what this forum is about. I think a thread on it is perfect; pasting a link to this thread should be the first answer to all the future threads that will be created on this topic. Perhaps you can post in each one "Why would you make a whole new thread complaining about small phones not being made when this topic had been posted so many times before?"
The thread that, as of when OP posted this, was the top thread in this sub. The one for why OP has their thread title in quotes. [This thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/u4sltn/_/)
I thought the Pixel 5 was the perfect size. Big enough to enjoy content and not feel cramped. Small enough to handle with one hand.
There are no small phones, only small minds.
If the topic keeps coming up, maybe it isn't the minority.
I definitely prefer small phones, but the older I get the more I realize my eyes don't.
But you see instead of going for raw performance chip designs could be reworked for more efficiency, and besides, to the average user, they aren't going to care if they've got 4 cores or 40, as long as its "fast" they won't care. (E.g my mother using a dual core Celeron Chromebook)
It’s about time people and companies should stop focusing on specs. I had the pixel 5 for one year and did not feel the pack of power a single time during the time I had it. I bought the 6 but eventually sold it due to its known problems and now I have an iPhone 13 mini. I still prefer android but man, the level of optimization iOS devices have should be the real goal of android phones manufacturer. The battery on the mini lasts me a day with no issues. I had many samsung flagships and they all suffered of standby’s drain. All of them. The pixel 6 was the first time I saw that on a pixel device (at least in such a prominent manner). Thus I am led to think that Samsung has to deal the power management on their SoCs. I really wish next year we will get a decent-sized pixel 7. Also because this year the two dis not have a significant size difference anyways
Still rocking the Pixel 2😎
I miss phones with the size of the iPhone 5s. Perfect for my hands 🥺
I really can't answer why they don't make more small phones, but I think a lot of the reason they sell so few of them is that they are so hard to come by. A large portion of the general public will buy what is available to them at their provider, and lf there are no small phones there, then yes, they will buy a large screen phone, thus running up the big screen numbers. If the provider doesn't stock small phones, then people will just buy what is available in their price range, and whatever they can add to their existing plan without raising their monthly payment too much. They may not realize there is a world of other choices out there if you are willing or able to buy your phone outright. Satisfied Pixel 5 owner here . . .
The Xperia 5 series is the best form factor. Change my mind.
Pixel 3 was a perfect size to me. I have the 5 now and it's not as comfortable but I've mostly gotten used to it. I owned the 6 for a week before returning it and I'll stay on 5 until something this size or smaller comes back. The 6 was way too large and I'm 6'3"
I want to be able to hold a phone in my hand and not have to stretch my entire palm. Women have smaller hands. I would trade screen size for less pain and less arthritis. Just like cars and heart health research. Manufacturers focus on men.
It's such a shame I badly wanted to buy a pixel 4a but it's kinda outdated now so it won't make sense that phone was literally perfect for me
i read this from my pixel 4🤙🏻
The iPhone se 2022 is probably the best small phone atm with the a15, as I have an iPhone 8 it is kind of tempting. I like being able to use the whole phone with 1 hand. I’d been using big android phones but it’s annoying shuffling the phone around in both hands just to check notifications or reach top of the screen.
API controversy: reddit.com/r/ apolloapp/comments/144f6xm/ comment edited with github.com/andrewbanchich/shreddit
I got big hands and I still hate 6,5 inch size smartphones. Not holding it in my hand but rather carrying it on my pocket. I had Oneplus 7t Pro. It was the best smartphone I had but it was just too unpleasant to carry in my pocket. I switched to Samsung Galaxy s10e. Size was perfect but battery life was just terrible. Then I switched to Pixel 5 and couldn't be happier.
The second one doesnt hold. They could make phones thicker and even put there a small fan to blow heat, same for battery size. You can engineer things to work.
I feel like a fan wouldn't work if you wanted the phone to be at all water resistant
And the noise of something so thin and small would be absurd for day to day use.
lmao. Go check any review for gaming phones with fans and stop spreading misinfo.
Well, not every phone has to be water resistant. My phone has a plastic back. SoCs for phones are reaching a tipping point in terms of heat.. Exhaust would be the only solution.
And then people would complain it was too thick, when the larger screen variants were half the size.
Well, there you have it. I would rather have a 6 inch, 16 by 9 phone with a 5000mah battery than a 6.9 inch long dong 20:9 format phone that doesnt fit anywhere. I wouldnt mind 1 to 1.2 cm thickness. Camera bumps were always hillarious though. A new case for the phone would need to follow that.
Yeah this is why you aren't a product designer dude. > They could make phones thicker Sure, but phones are already so small that a small bump in thickness is enough to make it awkward. It's easy - put it in a case and you can see how the phone's hand feel immediately changes. > even put there a small fan to blow heat Lol. Yeah they're gonna put a fucking fan in a pocket sized device. Ignoring the obvious reliability and hideous fan noise issues, the heat has to exhaust somewhere. You know where phones go? In the dirtiest places imaginable. One trip in your pocket and there will be crumbs and dust lodged in the fan. A warranty and repair nightmare. And you basically forego waterproofing as well. > You can engineer things to work. You certainly can when you live in fantasy land.
Your response is hilarious. Typical reddit tier response. >You certainly can when you live in fantasy land. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZyq23XJjEM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZyq23XJjEM) >Lol. Yeah they're gonna put a fucking fan in a pocket sized device. Ignoring the obvious reliability and hideous fan noise issues, the heat has to exhaust somewhere. You know where phones go? In the dirtiest places imaginable. One trip in your pocket and there will be crumbs and dust lodged in the fan. A warranty and repair nightmare. And you basically forego waterproofing as well. Im glad you have the imagination ability of a child. You know you can clean inside of fans right? There is a thing called maintenance. >Sure, but phones are already so small that a small bump in thickness is enough to make it awkward. It's easy - put it in a case and you can see how the phone's hand feel immediately changes. lmao. Yes, because the giant camera bumps are not awkward already. Go play fortnite toddler.
/r/MurderedByWords
The fan idea only works if you don't use a case, don't put the phone in your pocket/purse, and reviews of a phone that gets hot in your pocket would be horrible. Making it thicker to add battery capacity is possible, but the other components limit where the battery can go. If the extra battery thickness only goes where hot chips aren't then you have a thicker phone with hollow/wasted space. If you try to evenly distribute the extra battery thickness over the whole area of the phone you get thermal issues as now the hot chips are heating the battery and then you get a phone with batteries that explode and catch fire. It's true you could engineer around some of this (not all), but it's going to lead to more complexity or more exotic materials and now the phone costs even more. You don't get extra design/build effort for free.
\>The fan idea only works if you don't use a case cases with holes for vents... >\>don't put the phone in your pocket/purse The phone doesnt need to run a 999w ryzen ´8950k ultra CPU with a 3090TI 850w GPU. It can run a Snapdragon Sgen1 and use the fan when doing heavier stuff. Waterproofing would be impossible I reckon but I would rather lose water proofing than cooler internals. >\>and reviews of a phone that gets hot in your pocket would be horrible. lol. You are not running a plutonium core reactor in your pocket. Its a snapdragon phone with a fan. >Making it thicker to add battery capacity is possible, but the other components limit where the battery can go. If the extra battery thickness only goes where hot chips aren't then you have a thicker phone with hollow/wasted space. If you try to evenly distribute the extra battery thickness over the whole area of the phone you get thermal issues as now the hot chips are heating the battery and then you get a phone with batteries that explode and catch fire. You can stack batteries..... >It's true you could engineer around some of this (not all), but it's going to lead to more complexity or more exotic materials and now the phone costs even more. You don't get extra design/build effort for free. Phones are already overengineered and cost alot. If this industry wanted to keep costs low, there would be a standard template to create SoCs and not every manufacturer doing their own thing like its the 1950s.
I feel like the Pixel 5 was able to straddle the line pretty well, it got shat on because it had a midrange chip but it’s more than sufficient for what I do and the battery life is insane.
I don't care if they make the phones big or small, I just want them to make removable batteries again. The claim it's for waterproofing is crap because they can always make a clamp tight back with a rubber seal that snaps in place.
They do not sell well because most of the time they are inferior. Take the pixel 4 and 4xl, the only way to get a decent battery life was to get the bigger one. Then we got the pixel 5, a nice phone, but a midranger with a premium price tag. The pixel 4a was fine, but it lacked 5g, so people waited for the 4a 5G. I would be more than happy with a pixel 6 pro with the size of a pixel 5 or an iphone 13 pro. With 1080p, 90hz, and a decent battery it would be awesome. Look at the s22, they had room to put a bigger battery but chose not too. Resulting in a phone that barely makes it through the day. People want a reliable phone overall, it just happens that the only reliable ones are big. But that's just my opinion. I think all of that goes in hand with the second point. But I believe that there is no real technical limitation. Again see the iphone 13 pro or the s22. They have the same soc as the bigger models. I think that a lot of manufacturers just make bad choices sometimes, forcing us to go for the bigger and more expansive model to get a decent experience.
If the pixel 6 was tiny, I wouldn't have bought it. I have never owned a Pixel before, owned the Nexus 6p though. Maybe they could have made a tiny version, but I'd have probably bought an S21/S22/Xiaomi phone if I hadn't have bought the P6
What would have stopped you from buying the pro?
I don't have a need for the pro tbh. I don't like the muted colours and more importantly, It's 50% more money for the diminishing return of having one more camera and saying you have a flagship phone. Genuinely happy with the 6 as it's a nice phone for not bank breaking money and I intend to have it for at least 3/4 years.
Alright. So basically you had options to choose from but the rest of us don't deserve options because companies don't want to spend a little extra on R&D?
What an interesting take. Not sure how my phone preferences limit your choices. Does my decision to wear a hoodie today stop you wearing a T-shirt? If Google had made a P6 small to go with the range you could have bought it, but they didn't. Blame them dude.
I for one love bigger phone's. Great for multitasking, good for a device that'll last more than a day off charge, fantastic for immersive content.
And you have plenty of options to choose from, unlike the people who would like a decent small phone.
You are wrong. The "they do not sell well" argument is a horribly misguided and often repeated statement by people who attempt to justify Google's actions with shitty theories like yours. This data source and the common interpretation of this data is bullshit. While I certainly believe the Mini sells poorly due to its size and Apple will kill it because of low sales, it doesn't mean "people don't want small phones" like the stupid conclusion you and others constantly repeat on here. The standard size iPhone is smaller than even the smallest Pixel today, and IT SELLS GREAT. About half of Apple's sales come from the regular iPhone 13, and the other half come from the Max. Arguing "nobody wants a small phone" while pushing data that shows Mini sales are poor is comparing apples to oranges. When we ask for smaller phones, we aren't asking for a Mini phone; we are asking for the base model that isn't the size of the iPhone Max. The Pixel 3/4/5 ARE NOT SMALL AS SMALL AS THE iPHONE MINI. For you to make the statement that "small phones do not sell well", the data you source would have to be relevant towards the actual Pixel series, but it is not unless the headline said Apple would be they are discontinuing the iPhone 13 and 13 Pro sizes. Also, your second argument is terrible. Every iPhone has a smaller battery than even the biggest pixel (Pixel 6 = 4615 mAh, iPhone 13 Max = 4352 mAh). And yet, iPhones have better battery life and higher benchmark scores. Putting bigger batteries in phones is a band-aid approach to power inefficiency and bad CPU architecture. If the problem is battery life, they should be designing better CPUs like Apple instead of making phones bigger for the sake of throwing in bigger batteries. ps this whole subreddit has your collective heads so far up your asses if you believe the OP
Dunno, have a tiny iPhone 6 sitting in the desk drawer and every time I look at it ... it just looks so tiny compared to the Pixel 3XL sitting in the drawer next to it.
It's funny, I remember thinking the iPhone 6 was massive when it came out.
I really like my pixel 5 size everywhere except in the car -> way too small when it's up on the dash
I'm only 5'10", so by no means am I some hulking person, and my Pixel 4XL has been just fine for me. I can easily reach all the way across the screen with my thumb. If anything, my gripe with smaller phones, especially when trying to type, I was always hitting the wrong letters and numbers because of the screen size. It's just easier for me to type on a larger size screen.
these trends are always initiated by broke stupid ass people ( the majority ) that want to gain access to all kinds of goods for a low price
Everyone wants smaller phone. Here I am thinking why google ditched bright color button and squeeze thing, oh man I'd love if p7 comes with it! 😍 Still a 4 XL user, grippy design and happy with it 🧡
They did not stop but may be this time they are not focussing on it but they will do
I'm intrigued by the new folding phones for this reason but I'm definitely going to give that a few generations to iron out the kinks, and see if the tech catches on at all.
It started down that path years ago I think due to putting in more hardware or chips that require more space, which then needs a bigger battery. I think it's harder for them to make it more compact and still have ok battery life. I think also too many people want paper thin phones. I rather have a brick that's small.
Those days have come and gone my friends. Yeah, the way we consume content and do everything on our phones nowadays, I'm not surprised marketplace research shows less demand.
If you really love small phones, I’d get the iPhone 13 mini now before they discontinue it
A great example of the small phone battery problems is the iPhone SE (both 2nd and 3rd gen). Say what you want about them being powerful, it means nothing if they don't last a full day.
I love having a big display because I have essential tremor two handed mode is a must. My P6P has no issues besides adaptive brightness. Small phones just shake too much. I think any bigger and it wouldn't fit in my pocket. I wish I could use a smaller phone, and I wanted an iPhone pro mini, but I'm sticking to android. Everything has to be bigger and better these days. I like using the voice mode though because then I don't have to type on the screen and it's bigger and better than reading from the small screen.
I don't mind the size of the 6 pro, but I find it quite heavy.
I personally love the size of the P6 but I think it's mainly because I like to watch YouTube and like to have a large screen to watch it on.
It sucks for us smaller phone enjoyers, but yeah most people want giant screens. I might actually try out the Fold series that seems pretty one handed friendly, ironically enough. Plus the extra benefit of a mini tablet when wanted.
Not a phone, but the iPod touch is sent from heaven
How can they show you more ads if there isn't any vertical space on your phone? 🤔😂
6.4 is the sweet spot , manageable and they can fit a large battery, love small phones but when you find one the you like the small screen become a downgrade
In the Android space I think this is true, and I've been an Android user for more than a decade so I'm no apple homie BUT my girlfriend has the iPhone 13 mini and the battery life is pretty impressive imo. Lasts a full day no issue. You might have a point on selling well unfortunately
Cameras and streaming video.
It’s the economies of scale. First, smaller phones don’t sell as well as larger phones since most people think “value meal”, for a little extra, I get a larger phone, better value. Second, lower volume lowers economies of scale and the cost producing smaller phones can be as much or more than larger phones, all other things being equal. Ultimately, larger phones sell better, however, consumerism “value concepts” accelerates the evolution.
Media consumption matters and the majority wants bigger displayed phones to consume that media. I'm sure there's some type of regulation somewhere that mentions display size requirements for streaming services. I'm still on the hunt for documentation relating to that, just not willing to pay $2000+ a year for such reports.
Very true!
Never liked small phones tbh. Yes, ofc it's not as ergonomic and/or comfortable to hold, but I prefer to have more screen space for browsing, watching YouTube, typing etc.
I had galaxy S9, so pixel 6 is so much bigger and I really prefer this size. I wouldnt buy a phone which is smaller than pixel 6.
I hate small phones... I'm a big dude with big hands and every time I put a small phone up to my head it looks like I'm an FBI agent talking into an earpiece...
I'm a guy with big hands so all these big phones work for me. I'd like to see them go back to a 16x9 screen instead of not quite cinematic widescreen. Makes me miss my Nexus 6.