The 5 Worst Things About Modern Smartphone Design
Smartphones are getting ever more competent in carrying out our day-to-day tasks. Year after year we see massive improvements in camera quality, performance, and bigger, brighter screens. However, amidst all this progress, smartphones have been unable to find improvements in terms of design and the in-hand feel.
From huge footprints to slippery glass backs, and hefty repair bills in case you drop them, smartphones are not moving forward in design and user experience. Read on for a few hot takes as we address concerns in the current sea of modern smartphone design.
1. Massive Footprints
Larger displays provide a more immersive experience while consuming content on phones, but also make one-handed use a nightmare. Reaching all four corners of the display without having to completely readjust your grip has become practically impossible with the growing size of smartphones.
Bigger displays also need denser batteries, which contributes to not just thickness but heft. Add to that the fact that most people also slap on a case on their already beefy phones, and even pocketability takes a hit.
Despite Apple trying to revive the market for smaller phones, theiPhone 12 Mini didn’t sell well. Most users want bigger phones, but this sadly comes at the expense of usability and ergonomics.
2. Slippery Glass Backs
The choice between picking sleek glass-and-aluminum sandwiches for phones over something more ergonomic like plastic or metal has become quite annoying. Sure, everybody loves having the most premium materials in their hands, but at what cost?
Most premium range devices cost a fortune already and to use them without a grippy case is a recipe for disaster. Fortunately (and ironically), this problem seems to disappear with cheaper phones that end up being easy to handle and less likely to slide out of your pocket.
We would love to see a new OnePlus phone with the signature sandstone back panel, or a return to the old HTC devices with metal unibody builds.
3. Expensive Repairs
Glass is more expensive than plastic. Glass is also far more fragile than plastic. Incorporating a delicate material onto the entire back of a phone not only makes it slippery but also prone to cracks and scratches.
This gets worse knowing how most modern smartphones aren’t very repair-friendly, to begin with. A glass back replacement for an iPhone 14 Pro Max can cost you over $300. The expensive repairs might be a good reason topurchase an AppleCare+ warrantyfor iPhones, or equivalent repair programs for other phones, but it still is an inconvenience that you have to deal with.
4. Design Inconsistencies
Apart from Apple and Samsung in recent times, it is quite difficult to find smartphone OEMs sticking to a design formula that not only looks good but is also functional. Even the camera bump on iPhones has been getting comically large with every iteration.
Other brands including OnePlus, Xiaomi, and Oppo have a clear lack of design standardization in their vast product lineup. Certain phones get a mute switch on one side, while others flip the volume rocker to the other. Camera modules have also been getting unmistakably ugly and inconsistent just to have something “fresh” with every new release.
5. Lack of Playfulness
While smartphone innovation is nowhere near dead, we’d argue that bold, funky, and playful designs sure are. Gone are the days when people used to be genuinely excited about the way a new Samsung or Apple phone would look like.
Most colorways we get in phones now usually consist of muted colors as well with competitors simply offering the same lineup of color options as one another.
The lack of playfulness somewhat also extends to the user interface. Despite how sleek and polished iOS and most Android skins now look, some of us miss theskeuomorphic designthat once dominated the look and feel of smartphone software.
At leastGoogle’s Material You designhas once again brought a pinch of personalization and a much-needed splash of colors to smartphone UI.
Maximize Your Phone’s Ergonomics and Aesthetics
With more and more consumers demanding large, powerful phones with better cameras and bigger batteries, there’s only so much that smartphone manufacturers can do with the phone’s footprint.
Despite the inevitably big and slippery designs of modern smartphones, there are things you can do to make sure you keep your phone safe as well as personalized, like choosing from a host of different types of cases to avoid exterior damage, or just slapping on a skin for added personalization.
Do you go for the extra security of a case or the slimline design of a skin?
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