Comment by brandonmenc
11 hours ago
> Perhaps they are targeting people with a smaller iPhone who want another device to watch YouTube.
Hi, it me.
I have an iPhone 13 Mini that will have to be pried from my cold dead hands because it's about as big a phone as I'm willing to carry (I'd still rather have the 5s form factor.)
I also have an iPad Mini that supplements it perfectly.
Really don't want anything larger, because I like to handle it with one hand while walking or I'm propping it up in a tight space like when I'm watching a how-to video while doing a home-improvement project or working on my car.
There is absolutely no way I'd buy a phone as gigantic as a Max.
Honestly not sure how people walk around with those things.
If I didn't have to spend the $, I'd totally have a small phone for when I leave the house, and a bigger device like this for when I'm at home.
> There is absolutely no way I'd buy a phone as gigantic as a Max.
It's not gigantic for everyone to be fair. I'm 6′1″ with largish hands I suppose and the Max is a single hand device for me. Small devices look comical in my hands. I was one of those very well served by Apple starting to make larger devices, and it's when I shifted over from Android full time to iOS devices. (I was very fond of the early generation Galaxy Note devices prior to that.)
> Honestly not sure how people walk around with those things.
The same way as I do anything of that size. It goes in my pocket or i'm holding it?
I get where you are coming from those because my partner has a much smaller 13 line device and we've done some basic testing and like you, shifting to a Max sized device...well, its just not very likely. My phone looks absolutely jumbo once you put it in her teeny hands.
I dunno, I'm 6'2" with corresponding hand size and I'm in the "won't go larger than a 13 mini" camp.
I think preference probably plays a bigger role than size. I see a lot of tiny people manhandling pros and maxes too.
I'm 5'8" and have no problem at all using a Max one-handed (provided it's not in a case). Is it difficult for you to shift the grip on your phone while you're holding it?
I'm 6'7" (with corresponding hand size) and prefer the mini too
There are dozens of us big humans whose ideal form factor is the 12/13 mini. Dozens!
Why do I need to carry around a huge screen to text, make phone calls and take pictures?
For most people, preference likely plays a bigger role, but for me, it’s all about the size of my hands and fingers. I find smaller devices uncomfortable for anything beyond basic phone use. As a computing device where touch is the primary interaction, I prefer something larger, which is why I stuck with Android when Apple wasn’t making bigger phones. It’s also about being able to have it further from my face.
At the time, many Apple users claimed no one wanted larger phones and that Apple’s size was perfect. I disagreed and voted with my wallet. For me, there are no downsides to a larger device—I can still use it one-handed, it fits in my pockets, and going smaller wouldn’t make it any more portable or usable.
For others, it’s the opposite. A smaller phone may be easier to handle or fit better in pockets or everyday carry. So I agree there should be different sizes to meet different needs, including smaller options if the market supports them. Among my circle, smaller phones tend to be the preference for those who primarily use their device for calls and texts. Anything beyond that, like browsing, moves to a tablet. These people are generally in their mid-30s to mid-40s.
Interestingly, the ‘non-techy’ people I know with larger phones say it’s because they use a popsocket or view their phone more as a computer than a phone. They’re willing to trade off size for a bigger screen. Many of them don’t own another personal computing device, aside from maybe a tablet. They’re typically in their 20s to 30s.
I feel like I’m part of a shrinking group that still uses both a laptop and a desktop as my primary computing environments.
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I mean yeah, of course I know how people hold and walk around with these devices. I was being silly.
Everything you said about large hands rings true for small hands and the mini form factor, but instead of just looking silly it's a hinderance.
We need both form factors. What I don't think we need is the weird middle size (current regular iPhone size), but I'm sure that's probably the one most people actually want if they could only pick one.