We're going to need to do some photo/video of people holding phones. I am pretty sure in the end we're going to see how most people are holding/using their phones improperly.
Remember, I'm also the person who has had a naked iPhone for four years with no cases, and never cracked any surface or scratched the screen. That is a pretty strong evidence that suggests you should probably listen to my advice when it comes to holding the phone.
He isn't saying his fingertip is spherical, Scott. He's saying his fingertips are round and flat. They do not easily create a pinpoint tangential surface area.
The surprising thing is how many people actually think the bigger screen is better (because they watch lots of videos, etc)... and then complain (okay, perhaps semi-rightfully so) when I tell them that "if you're using your phone that way, you're using it wrong -- use a tablet instead!"
Man, imagine not wanting to spend money on two expensive devices when making one a little bit bigger can make it work for everything you need. How ridiculous!>
He also uses it as his primary mobile computer. It works perfectly fine for him; he does half his forum browsing and posting from his phone. Why should he buy a tablet when he already has a device that works great as a phone and a small tablet? Shit be expensive, and sometimes we have to choose
I'm not doubting that in some use cases, such as the one you cited, having a bigger screen is justifiable. However, declaring a phone immediately superior solely on the basis of having a larger screen is not -- and that's a lot of what I see from Android aficionados concerning iPhones: "The screen is tiny, it totally sucks!" Different use cases for different people. The main problem is that the only company offering a state of the art smartphone with a non-huge screen right now is Apple. If I wanted to get an Android smartphone that isn't an utter piece of crap, I'd need to get a larger screen than what I wanted.
FWIW, I did all my internet surfing while in Portugal with an iPhone 4s's screen and found it perfectly sufficient for my purposes there. A tablet with a bit bigger screen would've been nicer, of course, but given how I was mostly popping in and out of Wifi hotspots to quickly check email and such, I didn't really need anything more.
Edit: for that matter, the only Android smartphones I'd trust would be Google-branded ones. All the others jerk you around too much with software upgrade availability and pre-installed crapware that you can remove without rooting it.
Remember, I'm also the person who has had a naked iPhone for four years with no cases, and never cracked any surface or scratched the screen. That is a pretty strong evidence that suggests you should probably listen to my advice when it comes to holding the phone.
You're right in exactly the same way that I would be right if I said that cutting gluten out of my diet made me feel a whole lot better, so that's pretty strong evidence you should listen to my advice about your diet.
There is not one person in this thread saying "a bigger screen by itself with no use case is a selling point of any phone for any customer." Not one person.
I've been trying to get on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet but I just like food too much. It's a shame because it would probably help me a lot.
Doesn't help that it's a bitch to source ingredients around here without spending a fortune.
I'm not doubting that in some use cases, such as the one you cited, having a bigger screen is justifiable. However, declaring a phone immediately superior solely on the basis of having a larger screen is not -- and that's a lot of what I see from Android aficionados concerning iPhones: "The screen is tiny, it totally sucks!" Different use cases for different people. The main problem is that the only company offering a state of the art smartphone with a non-huge screen right now is Apple. If I wanted to get an Android smartphone that isn't an utter piece of crap, I'd need to get a larger screen than what I wanted.
FWIW, I did all my internet surfing while in Portugal with an iPhone 4s's screen and found it perfectly sufficient for my purposes there. A tablet with a bit bigger screen would've been nicer, of course, but given how I was mostly popping in and out of Wifi hotspots to quickly check email and such, I didn't really need anything more.
I agree, a larger screen doesn't make it "better." I'd prefer a larger screen cause the way i use my phone. I use my phone for nav a lot and having a larger screen to see things easier from further away would be nice.
I heard a rumor that the next Nexus will be offered in different sizes.
However, declaring a phone immediately superior solely on the basis of having a larger screen is not ...
Oh yes, definitely. It's all about whether a product meets your personal needs and wants. I like smaller phones like the iPhone. Pete's phone is way too big for me. It works for him, though, and that's what's important.
Lou is on target. There are a small minority of people out there who can justify a bigger screen. But a larger screen on a phone is a negative, not a positive, for the overwhelming majority of users, whether they realize it or not. Commercials, commentators, and most users seem to be taking larger screen as a positive feature for granted. At the same time manufacturers are only producing high end phone options with large screens. If the iPhone 6 gets any bigger, I might have to keep the 5 forever. Hopefully we'll have Google Glass by then to solve this problem altogether.
I'm not upgrading to iOS 6 yet because Apple Maps is not up to par with Google. But I'm not running around bitching about it because there is still a product that works for me. It's iOS 5. Likewise, there are smartphones with smallish screens still out there. No one is forcing you to upgrade to an iPhone 5.
Seriously, you sound like a whiny, spoiled kid who wants everything to go exactly his way, and if it's not perfect then he throws a tantrum. If it's not what you want, then don't "upgrade" to it.
I'm not upgrading to iOS 6 yet because Apple Maps is not up to par with Google. But I'm not running around bitching about it because there is still a product that works for me. It's iOS 5. Likewise, there are smartphones with smallish screens still out there. No one is forcing you to upgrade to an iPhone 5.
Seriously, you sound like a whiny, spoiled kid who wants everything to go exactly his way, and if it's not perfect then he throws a tantrum. If it's not what you want, then don't "upgrade" to it.
Apple Maps does suck, but that's ok. I just added a shortcut to maps.google.com to my home screen. Maps.google.com doesn't have street view, but otherwise it's even better than the old app. It has bicycle directions!
Apple Maps does suck, but that's ok. I just added a shortcut to maps.google.com to my home screen. Maps.google.com doesn't have street view, but otherwise it's even better than the old app. It has bicycle directions
Why didn't I think of that? Doing that now. I'm going to need it for my trip to Portland today.
Apple Maps does suck, but that's ok. I just added a shortcut to maps.google.com to my home screen. Maps.google.com doesn't have street view, but otherwise it's even better than the old app. It has bicycle directions
Why didn't I think of that? Doing that now. I'm going to need it for my trip to Portland today.
Huh. Looks like the only drawback of this is that Siri won't default to it when I ask for directions verbally. I think I can live with that.
Well there is rumor that Google did submit a Maps app to Apple. So it's just a matter of time. I don't have Siri yet, so I don't know. Just in case, I'll print out directions as well.
It sounds like both of you feel the need to justify yourselves for no reason :P
I was thinking the same thing. As a side note, that's the one thing that's annoying about smart people - when they fall prey to bias and opinion/fact errors, but unlike a lot of people, there's usually no "Well, I just think it is!" arguments, they can actually come up with clever arguments to justify why their opinion is reality. And of course, just because one can either justify or appear to justify one's opinion, doesn't make it reality, as we well know.
Reality - Scott doesn't like big phones. Other people do like big phones, or at least, don't mind them. It doesn't actually fucking matter how big your phone is, as long as you personally like it and it works for you. Scott doesn't feel comfortable using Pete's phone, because of it's size? Why the fuck is he even using Pete's phone for more than a minute or two anyway? What happened to his phone? Ditto that for Pete using Scott's phone.
I am glad Apple is developing a maps app. Google has been a pratt about giving iOS users the same features as the Android users, so if Apple wants their customers to have built-in turn by turn then they should go for it. I just wish they'd started sooner so they wouldn't have so far to go to meet expectations.
There is not one person in this thread saying "a bigger screen by itself with no use case is a selling point of any phone for any customer." Not one person.
Yes, but this forum is more reasonable and intelligent than most. Trust me, I've lost count how many times I've seen Android fanboys slamming the iPhone for having a smaller screen on various other forums/sites/etc. There are pros and cons to the iPhone and every Android phone out there, but it seems like the #1 thing they go after is the screen size for whatever reason.
I agree, a larger screen doesn't make it "better." I'd prefer a larger screen cause the way i use my phone. I use my phone for nav a lot and having a larger screen to see things easier from further away would be nice.
I heard a rumor that the next Nexus will be offered in different sizes.
I can see that also helping justify a larger screen. My car has a built-in nav system (no, I didn't go out of my way to pay extra for it -- I bought the car used and it happened to come with one) and my wife has a separate Magellan nav system that she keeps in her car (got it before our phones offered turn-by-turn), so nav via large screen on a phone doesn't matter all that much to me. In the future, it may, but not until I run my current car into the ground. I may give iOS's directions a spin once they start sucking a little less, though. I'm just curious about how I like its UI vs. the one in my car or Magellan's.
A smaller Nexus would be a tempting choice, though, but I'm in no huge rush to change phones. I'll keep my current 4s until I either break it due to my clumsiness or Apple completely stops supporting it. At that point, I'll evaluate if changing platforms and having to repurchase apps and such is worth it. The fact that I'm grandfathered into an unlimited data plan with AT&T may also play a decision.
Oh yes, definitely. It's all about whether a product meets your personal needs and wants. I like smaller phones like the iPhone. Pete's phone is way too big for me. It works for him, though, and that's what's important.
Very true. Every person has different use cases for their phones. It's just a shame that not every company/mobile OS/etc. properly addresses all the different use cases -- at least when it comes to form factor, anyway.
I am glad Apple is developing a maps app. Google has been a pratt about giving iOS users the same features as the Android users, so if Apple wants their customers to have built-in turn by turn then they should go for it. I just wish they'd started sooner so they wouldn't have so far to go to meet expectations.
How has Google been a Pratt? The old Maps app for iOS that everyone loves so much was written by Apple using the Google API. Apple never updated it because they were planning to replace it. Google could not put in their own replacement, because the official app already existed. Also, because the official app is a default app, it is tied into the iOS API, which really restricts its specifications.
Comments
Remember, I'm also the person who has had a naked iPhone for four years with no cases, and never cracked any surface or scratched the screen. That is a pretty strong evidence that suggests you should probably listen to my advice when it comes to holding the phone.
My fingertips aren't hemispherical, actually. More like an oblate hemispheroid.
FWIW, I did all my internet surfing while in Portugal with an iPhone 4s's screen and found it perfectly sufficient for my purposes there. A tablet with a bit bigger screen would've been nicer, of course, but given how I was mostly popping in and out of Wifi hotspots to quickly check email and such, I didn't really need anything more.
Edit: for that matter, the only Android smartphones I'd trust would be Google-branded ones. All the others jerk you around too much with software upgrade availability and pre-installed crapware that you can remove without rooting it.
I've been trying to get on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet but I just like food too much. It's a shame because it would probably help me a lot.
Doesn't help that it's a bitch to source ingredients around here without spending a fortune.
I heard a rumor that the next Nexus will be offered in different sizes.
Seriously, you sound like a whiny, spoiled kid who wants everything to go exactly his way, and if it's not perfect then he throws a tantrum. If it's not what you want, then don't "upgrade" to it.
Reality - Scott doesn't like big phones. Other people do like big phones, or at least, don't mind them. It doesn't actually fucking matter how big your phone is, as long as you personally like it and it works for you. Scott doesn't feel comfortable using Pete's phone, because of it's size? Why the fuck is he even using Pete's phone for more than a minute or two anyway? What happened to his phone? Ditto that for Pete using Scott's phone.
Fuck's sake, people.
A smaller Nexus would be a tempting choice, though, but I'm in no huge rush to change phones. I'll keep my current 4s until I either break it due to my clumsiness or Apple completely stops supporting it. At that point, I'll evaluate if changing platforms and having to repurchase apps and such is worth it. The fact that I'm grandfathered into an unlimited data plan with AT&T may also play a decision. Very true. Every person has different use cases for their phones. It's just a shame that not every company/mobile OS/etc. properly addresses all the different use cases -- at least when it comes to form factor, anyway.
http://boingboing.net/2007/06/21/apple-uses-bighanded.html