that the 6 inches are standard mobile today, as crazy as it seemed a few years ago, even responds to a logical evolution. Carrying a computer in your pocket is becoming more and more meaningful to the point that many user profiles can more than spend their days without a desktop computer and do all their Internet browsing with their mobile.
The size panorama in Android does not look bad, apparently, with these 6-inch options as intermediate models and with cell phones with a larger diagonal for those looking for a wider experience. The problem comes from almost non-existence of mobiles under 6 inches. And that, for lovers of small phones, is an absolute drama.
Apple as the main representative of the success and failure of compact mobiles
If there was a person, who in fact will exist, who wanted and needed a smartphone that was as compact as possible and without sacrificing good performance, they would most likely end up buying an iPhone. And not because I prefer iOS as a system to Android, but because Apple is the main reference in high-end mobiles with reduced dimensions.
In addition to its 6.1 and 6.7-inch flagships (iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max), the Cupertino company also offers compact variants without sacrificing power. A good example of these are the iPhone 13 mini and iPhone SE 2022 with 5.4 and 4.7 inches respectively.
And both they can be the example and the perfect excuse Android makers to explore a market that, as we will see later, has been largely abandoned. Perhaps the iPhone 13 mini is a worse example given its lower-than-expected sales, but the “SE” aims to shine in the market as it did with its previous version.
And while this article doesn’t intend to touch on what would be an exhaustive study of market and consumer behavior, we can put some theory on the table. And that’s what the iPhone 13 mini likes and yet does not sell, it could meet its price of around 800 dollars. The iPhone SE is sold at a price of around 500 dollars. A price similar to Android’s high-end mid-rangewhich implies that the consumer can even “gobble” with a somewhat old-fashioned design in favor of power and size.
In android we accept octopus as pet
If we take a look at the latest and most compact high-end mobiles, we will observe how, with the exception of some like the aforementioned iPhone, the most compact Android measures 5.9 inches. Specifically the ASUS Zenfone 8, which offers very good performance, but neither can we say that it is really a very compact mobile.
Others like the Samsung Galaxy S22 offer 6.1 inches. As in the case of ASUS, it cannot be said too clearly that it can be considered a small mobile. Are they the most compact on Android? Yes they are and hence the expression to accept the octopus as a pet, because in the end it is with what we have to settle.
Perhaps the best bet is a foldable like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 or the Huawei P50 Pocket, although its price…
Case-type foldable phones like the Huawei P50 Pocket or the Galaxy Z Flip3 are ideal for this practice of having a compact mobile. After all, https://www.xataka.com/analisis/samsung-galaxy-z-flip3-analisis-characteristics-price-specs and its weight is generally not very high. Although the fact that they reach 6.9 and 6.7 inches unfolded completely takes away that virtue.
We can also somehow classify as compact those that weigh little. One of the most recent examples is found in the Motorola Edge 30, a device that we highlight precisely its “featherweight” of 155 grams. It’s well below average weight and it’s very comfortable in the hand, although having a 6.5-inch screen again poses a problem when it comes to calling it a small mobile.
It’s not only a matter of taste, but also of health
Go ahead, in the absence of data and with pure intuition, I personally imagine that most people who prefer a compact smartphone do so out of personal preference. Because they simply love it and want to take up little space in their pocket and be able to handle it comfortably in the hand. However, there are slightly more extreme cases where it’s a health problem.
And I won’t go very far to provide an example, since my personal experience helps me. Several years ago, I was diagnosed with tendonitis, which fortunately I was able to cure after a while (although I often have sequelae again). On this occasion I was carrying a fairly robust smartphone and I realized that the use of mobile has been very harmful to me for this injury.
No Android manufacturer dares to take a firm and decisive step in favor of more compact mobiles.
Obviously, the most advisable thing to do in situations like mine is to not use the mobile directly or to reduce its use to the strict minimum. But despite this, the few or many times I had to handle my smartphone they have become a test. I took the drastic route of selling it and getting a device that met my expectations of something powerful, yet compact. Already of those, the small Android mobile market was very tight and, guess what? I ended up opting for an iPhone 7 which, by the way, was (and is) identical in size to the current iPhone SE.
There will be many cases like mine and worse and at least personally I think this is a builder blunder to ignore this niche. I doubt it’s worth it for many brands to launch more and more mobile models with very similar features, which surpass themselves in functionality and with dimensions greater than 6 inches. Why doesn’t anyone dare to go all out for a compact mobile, with good features and at a price of around 500 dollars like the iPhone SE?
