Smart Phones Why So BIG?

[deathBOB]

Maybe a Galaxy S6 Active? Trades thinness for some durability

 

[Perryg114]

Looking for a good phone that is faster than my S3. Something rugged or that can be made so. Would like good battery life because I would use my phone more if it did not suck the life out of the battery. Would like voice dialing features that would let me hit a button on the blue tooth and say "home" and it dials home. I don't want to talk to some robot chick for 5mins to get it to dial the phone. Currently using an app to do this with the S3. The kind there you have to record each voice tag to make it work. Even my crap flip phones could learn your voice to do voice dialing. I would like a good camera that does not take long to get it working. I have to take the S3 out of my pocket, hit the home button, find the camera button, wait several seconds for the camera app to boot up, then it takes both hands to use the thing which makes it impossible to take photos quick and on the go. Not something you can do in a car at all. I use the GPS (big battery killer) a lot to make map files and navigating trails and keeping track of mileage. Occasionally, I will use email some, weather radar apps a lot, text some but not for entertainment, usually I don't play games (here is the big security hole) and Facebook and other apps like it are designed to track everything you do. If you don't want to be stalked, then don't use them. They have access to all your photos and contacts and any chatting you do. I don't watch videos because I have a computer at work and a laptop at home. When I connect my phone to WiFi it changes all my apps that I don't use all the time and don't have time to deal with new user interfaces every time I try to use them and AT&T changes all my settings when it does updates. It seems that the millennial programmers are always screwing with user interfaces because they are bored. I don't want pretty apps just apps that work.

I am looking at the MotoZ play and was looking at the Zenphone Zoom which I am leaning away from although it has a camera like interface but a not so great camera even with the 3x optical zoom. I don't care about thickness and I don't know why that matters. The thinner it is the crappier it is in my mind because it will bend and has short battery life. It is the length of the thing that makes it so bulky in my pocket and the thinner it is the more likely it is to get bent in half. They always turn sideways in your pocket and really get in the way. Thin is hard to hold. Phones should be 1/2 thick with rubber around them from the factory. Looks don't matter AT ALL.

I have cargo pants with BIG POCKETS but a large phone still gets in the way and flops around.

Perry

 

[Kazukian]

I know you dislike large phones, but I'm impressed as hell with the Le Pro3, especially with a price of $249 right now.

It needs a different launcher, I use Nova Pro, there's an app for the pixel launcher available that's slick too. Put a skin on it and call it a day...

 

[Topweasel]

Looking for a good phone that is faster than my S3. Something rugged or that can be made so. Would like good battery life because I would use my phone more if it did not suck the life out of the battery. Would like voice dialing features that would let me hit a button on the blue tooth and say "home" and it dials home. I don't want to talk to some robot chick for 5mins to get it to dial the phone. Currently using an app to do this with the S3. The kind there you have to record each voice tag to make it work. Even my crap flip phones could learn your voice to do voice dialing. I would like a good camera that does not take long to get it working. I have to take the S3 out of my pocket, hit the home button, find the camera button, wait several seconds for the camera app to boot up, then it takes both hands to use the thing which makes it impossible to take photos quick and on the go. Not something you can do in a car at all. I use the GPS (big battery killer) a lot to make map files and navigating trails and keeping track of mileage. Occasionally, I will use email some, weather radar apps a lot, text some but not for entertainment, usually I don't play games (here is the big security hole) and Facebook and other apps like it are designed to track everything you do. If you don't want to be stalked, then don't use them. They have access to all your photos and contacts and any chatting you do. I don't watch videos because I have a computer at work and a laptop at home. When I connect my phone to WiFi it changes all my apps that I don't use all the time and don't have time to deal with new user interfaces every time I try to use them and AT&T changes all my settings when it does updates. It seems that the millennial programmers are always screwing with user interfaces because they are bored. I don't want pretty apps just apps that work.

I am looking at the MotoZ play and was looking at the Zenphone Zoom which I am leaning away from although it has a camera like interface but a not so great camera even with the 3x optical zoom. I don't care about thickness and I don't know why that matters. The thinner it is the crappier it is in my mind because it will bend and has short battery life. It is the length of the thing that makes it so bulky in my pocket and the thinner it is the more likely it is to get bent in half. They always turn sideways in your pocket and really get in the way. Thin is hard to hold. Phones should be 1/2 thick with rubber around them from the factory. Looks don't matter AT ALL.

I have cargo pants with BIG POCKETS but a large phone still gets in the way and flops around.

Perry

I don't know what service you use and I don't know how well it can go from one network to another but there is a ATT exclusive S7 Active that you might want to look into.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Had a similar issue, do not really care for larger phones. Sadly there are very few choices. I'm on verizon and ended up getting a galaxy J3. Pros: So far so good. Battery last me several days. I can play clash of clans and some other derpy games if i feel like it. Navigation and web surf is snappy. Cons: Pictures are mediocre at best. Without a case it is slick as snot. It's billed as an "entry level" smart phone. I'm not a power user so there could be other cons I haven't run into.

Best part is I got it for free. I hate paying much for phones.

 

[Commodus]

Had a similar issue, do not really care for larger phones. Sadly there are very few choices. I'm on verizon and ended up getting a galaxy J3. Pros: So far so good. Battery last me several days. I can play clash of clans and some other derpy games if i feel like it. Navigation and web surf is snappy. Cons: Pictures are mediocre at best. Without a case it is slick as snot. It's billed as an "entry level" smart phone. I'm not a power user so there could be other cons I haven't run into.

Best part is I got it for free. I hate paying much for phones.

Biggest con beyond the camera: Samsung will likely abandon updates for that phone very quickly. It does upgrade lower-cost phones, but it tends to devote much less attention to those than to the flagships like the Galaxy S and Note series (with the exception of the Note 7, of course). My guess: you maybe get one major OS update and that's all she wrote.

 

[hanoverphist]

originally i thought this thread was actually about the trend in bigger phones, but realized it was actually about what the OP wanted to replace his really old phone. im not a slave to tech for the most part, even tho my job revolves around it. the bigger screen has really helped me at work, i used to have to remote in with my laptop while it was connected to my phone as a serial modem device. being able to use just my phone to remote in and actually have a workable session on the screen is awesome. i have the nexus 6 right now, and had a note 3 before that. i had to adjust to the pocket size and all the ribbing i got for having a tablet up to my ear and such, but even those that made fun the most are getting the 5" and larger phones now, saying they love being able to see everything much better.

as for which phone you should get? no idea, i dont know much about the newest stuff coming out, and i wont ever switch back to a small screen again.

 

[ClockHound]

Just got a used Note 4. It's the perfect size for a adult pocket computer. No more little children's phones for me. Less than 5.5" screen is for kids.