This is why the Zenfone failed. It's pretty much the same size as the S23/Pixel 8/iPhone 15, but those offer 5 more years of software support. Asus is just a hardware manufacturer. They profit from people buying a phone every year.
@Mr.Tiger444 What good does this message do on someone else's videos? I see you make videos, why don't you make a video asking for support from your viewers- not someone else's.
@@beardsntools that's YOUR opinion. Many people actually like the idea of a phone that can be fully used with one hand and can fit COMFORTABLY in a front pocket. For probably the last 6 or more years I've had to buy pants with a side pocket just so I don't have to put my phone in my front pocket.
I'm a wee Japanese lady and work requires me to communicate using their app. Big heavy phones are killing my hands it's so tiring to communicate this way 😭
The best thing you can do right now is to get an old small phone (like the Galaxy S9) and just flash a custom ROM which still get new security updates so you always stay up to date. It also de-googles your phone and protects your privacy!
@@n646n Whether we really care about it or not, Android is not perfect; far from it. It's very much vulnerable to attacks. And the ones who get targeted the most often are either the old generation or the gullible new generation. As such, regular Security Updates are a must have to prevent any kind of software attacks. One might think: I don't have any people who would go after me, but truthfully, something as simple as charging your phone on an outlet, say, on the metro station, would be more than enough to get access to everything on a vulnerable phone. Additionally, custom roms are just better as it is open source and some of them are so heavily optimized that I had a smooth experience running one on my Galaxy J6 with only 3 GB RAM! This happens because unlike traditional android phones, these roms do not constantly take and share your personal data, hence not using any RAM. So no, they won't get slower with new updates. My ADHD arse wrote an entire essay, I'm sorry :(
As a current 13 mini user, I’m sad. They should bring them back every like 5 years or something so once our current ones get really old and start dying we can get a new one.
@@Rodrifuuu From a business perspective, it simply isn't profitable enough to keep it going for large smartphone manufacturers. I honestly don't mind it if they went with that idea.
Despite what the market seems to do, I hear from a lot of people, that they can't find new, small phones. I would say, 80% of women I know, want a small phone. I know a few guys, mostly the ones who do labor intensive jobs, they want a small phone what fits into their pockets. In my view, the perfect formfactor was the LG/Google Nexus 5. I had this phone twice and loved it.
@@GoalSquad666100% this! We didn't know about the Zenfone until a year after my wife bought the S21. She has hated the size of the phone since she bought it, but didn't know of any of the good alternatives. She would desperately go back in time and get a Zenfone instead. But it just doesn't make sense for her to upgrade to the Zenfone at this point, since we just spent nearly $1000 on the S21 and it still works perfectly fine.
As someone who has an iPad, laptop and TV I see no point in having a giant phone. Very inconvenient for me during daily use and I'm a male with average size hands.
I'm still holding onto my 12 mini. I love it and my next phone will probably be the 13 mini (if I can find a new one on ebay). I personally love the small phones and I'm really sad the rest of you don't 😥
It's a bit of a myth they don't sell well, the entry level plus doesn't sell any better. However it's cheaper to offer an entry level plus than a mini for Apple because they don't have to engineer a new form factor, it's the same as the pro max.
@@boostav A bigger one is not much more expensive to make but fetches a higher price. Anyway if it is too small I do not like the keyboard with my dull fingers.
i have an se 3 and i swear i was all prepared form my next upgrade to be the zenephone lineup and then they just hit me with this that they are stopping it like comon all i need is one ether a new mini iphone a se with a small screen like now or the zenephone mini to continue i would be happle with any but i just got this iphone se 3 so i will be keeping for a long time but i really hope some company comes in clutch in the next 3 years
Apple, Samsung, and Google, should release a mini like every 3-4 generations. And make it publicly known ahead of time that that's what they're doing. Then it should actually sell enough to make financial sense and still provide the niche market an option.
they don't do small smartphone anymore cuz we consume less content in it and they want us to consume as much as possible (only rugged phone can have small size since it's not their goal to have customer consume as much as possible)
@@andy.robinson when we have smaller phone we tend to consume content on another devices that have bigger screen (PC TV etc) but on bigger phone we will less likely use another devices to consume content
Small phone lover here - I can’t help but wonder if the problem is they’re bringing out new small phones *every year* - I know my journey has been iPhone 5s, original iPhone SE, iPhone 7 for a month or two, and I’m now on the SE 2020. I don’t need all of the bells and whistles, so upgrades are more “when necessary” than “when the next shiny thing comes out”. Maybe if a phone maker just did a new mini phone every 3-4 years, it would see higher sales?
They did it too small which is good for "mini" lovers but it was TOO small for anyone to really consider it for that price. Now when they bump iPhone 16 size a little bigger mini would be a cool choice but it won't happen now.
I kind of miss my old Sony Xperia Z1 compact, I could use the entire 4.3" screen with one hand. Going from that to the S7 was a noticeable change. I also remember when we used to mock people for using "phablets".
This video feels like an actual funeral to me. Small flagships will always be near and dear to my heart. The world was cruel to you, minis... You'll be missed, dearly... I could just cry rn...
I just bought a used 13 mini that still has AppleCare and I'm happy you can buy yearly AppleCare now, so I'm gonna keep mine until it is too slow to be functional. I figure another three or four years at least.
As a woman with small hands, I did not ask for larger screens. My favorite phone I've ever had was a 5" screen with a slide out keyboard that I had in 2011.
Speaking on the iPhone 12/13 mini not selling well; one thing I can add is that a lot of carriers wouldn’t recommend and even sometimes (like what happened to me) *discourage* and *lie* about availability of those phones to sell the more expensive and available models. So I, someone who actually asked for that product, wasn't able to buy it due to phone stores and companies not selling the darned thing. Very disappointing that small phones are going away.
very true, I live in a "iPhone dominate" country & have never seen a Mini & when I asked my mom who wishes her phone was smaller (13 Pro), I told her about the Mini's & she didn't know they existed.
Yep. Apple probably wanted it to sell well. The carriers did not. Less money for APple isn't much of an issue but through carriers means less money for carriers too and they don't have to worry about silly things like honesty about the products they sell, like Apple or Samsung do.
My brother is a small phone guy. He even replaced the battery in his old iPhone SE to keep it going longer. He had a 12 mini and went ahead and upgraded to a 13 mini before it was too late to buy them anymore. I'm guessing he'll keep this thing going for as long as possible. I've never wanted a small phone but I don't like the size creep on everything in general. I think the 5.8" iPhone X was as big as I'd like a phone to be but then they had to push it up to 6.1" with the 12 pro for some reason.
@@beardsntools If that were true the iphone would have never taken off to begin with. Small smartphones are perfectly capable, not everyone wants a small tablet in their pocket.
@@beardsntools Feature phones lack proper application support, camera quality and security features unlike smartphones. Mini smartphones are literally normal smartphones but smaller - same OS, same applications, same camera
As a woman of a smaller frame, this makes me so sad😭 It feels like most modern phones are just designed to give me hand cramps, and I was so happy after I got my Asus, and I was planning on buying future models when this one would eventually die, but it seems like I just gotta rely on my smartphone less
Try the Samsung Galaxy S series! The Galaxy S24 is basically the same size as the Zenfone, and Samsung has kept the length of the phones between 5.5 and 5.99 inches basically for the last 4 or 5 phones they have released. Heck, the S24 is smaller than the S20!
I think this here is why the sales look bad. The people who like small phones are more practical and don't buy new phones as often. I still use an s10e just fine.
I am part of the niche that wants small phones, I have an iPhone 13 mini and I'd instantly go to a SE (1st gen) sized phone if it was revamped with new specs.
The problem is physics - can't have the exact same functionality in a smaller phone without compromise. Apple were able to get away with it for the first SE phone being a 6S in a smaller factor minus 3D Touch. However with ever evolving technological and user requirements and optimisations being built in, the new SE lineup will be gimped even more in a smaller form factor unless the size is increased, but that brings another issue regarding a higher price. The SE is meant to be much lower priced to differentiate from the flagship models but a price too close to the 15 will kill the sales before the phone is even released.
@@heylliottI'm part of that niche too, for me, it's way easier to grab with one hand, you can easily tap messages with one finger, same for scrolling, my thumb can reach the other side of the screen and like 80% of it is accessible without readjusting my grip on it (I'm using a zenphone 8 with a bumper case).My hands are a bit larger than the average but my fingers are shorter so I can't use a lot of phones one handed now that screens have gotten so big. I don't need to have a bigger screen cause it is to me more problems, more surface that could break. + Making bigger phones without adding a headphone jack is just useless to me... I'll stick to the zenphone brand but not higher than the 10 or simply stop buying smartphones if I can't stay with these small screens.
I have small hands and big phones are a nightmare for me! I have been using my google pixel 3a for years now and will be crying the day i have to replace it.
As a small phone user (zenfone 9), its an awesome device to use on the go. When I'm at home I have a laptop/computer for big screen viewing, and even then the smaller phone is easier to hold while reclining.
The iPhone SE is about the right size phone in width and height for me. Imagine if it was the same without the bezels. The mini was too small I couldn’t type properly lol
As a Galaxy S23 user,having a phone that is somewhat usable one-handed,lightweight, and pocketable is something I'll miss the more rare these types of phones become.
@viviviontheway what he means is as years have gone on phone sizes have increased to the point where screen sizes above 6" have become the norm. Making the majority of people not even consider the smaller alternatives leading to them being rarer and rarer with each generation. We've become so used to large screens that we forget even the iPhone 6 with a 4.7" screen was considered "big".
As someone who lived by small phones, it just got to the point where i was too fed up with it. Esp with japanese games the text is like impossible to read, along reading manga, it just caused me to zoom in too much. Switched to a bigger phone and its just so much more pleasent. Maybe if companies used bigger fonts i wouldnt mind so much. (Mainly a jp issue tho, eng text tends to be bigger and clealer)
Yep. I haven’t loved a phone as much as I loved my 12 mini. I usually upgrade every year, but if the 13 mini had 120hz, I’d still be using it. 60hz is what made me go back to Pro models.
Well, the “regular” Galaxy S model is actually a pretty small phone comparatively but sells fairly well. The Zenfone is nice but historically it has been been hampered by lack of support for some US frequency bands and a relatively short software support period.
Can't speak for the frequency band issue as I don't live in the US, but the lack of software support is absolutely the anchor that's dragging Zenfone down. For some reason, my family is pro-Zenfone so I've used everything from the old budget Zenfones to flagships and they all have one common denominator: poor OS updates. Generally speaking, I love Zenfone software. It's super light and very close to AOSP, but their support absolutely sucks. Even when they do release an OS update, it's usually buggy as shit and won't get fixes for a few months.
I bought a galaxy s23 after my galaxy s10e died thinking it was a small phone, it isn't It is not comfortable to use with one hand, it doesn't compare to my s10e
It's a bitter reality that small phones aren't just a rare breed - they are truly extinct now. As a fan of these little gems myself, I find it a real shame that manufacturers are moving towards larger screen sizes without leaving room for variety. But I suppose the market has spoken, and the demand for smaller handsets just isn't there anymore. RIP, small flagships - you'll be missed.
Yeah I don't care about flagship phones at all, just give me a decent budget one and I'll be more than happy. For me the phone is a basic tool that I don't want to take up so much space or cost much at all. And I'm positivt that I'm not alone in this!
I think the flip phone somewhat replaces the small phones, although losing some durability and having to deal with a cumbersome flip everytime, flip phones provide a bigger screen with still a small package you can put in your pocket
Why people aren't buying small phones. I also loved the idea of the iPhone Mini and when it was time to buy an iPhone 13, I was struggling between the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 13 mini. I went for the iPhone 13 which I am still using to this day. The reality is, that there are too many drawbacks of a mini phone, like the smaller display and the shorter battery life. It is lighter and easier to hold but the regular size and even the Pro Max or Plus iPhone can easily fit in my pocket. The price drop also isn't that substantial for me to consider a mini phone. So I miss the iPhone mini but I am also the murderer.
@@VincentLeong-bb4vn Wouldn't say that the smaller screen is a drawback, it's a feature! Shorter battery life can be mitigated by a slightly thicker phone (not really that big of a deal for me) and better optimized software. The price though is a Apple problem, not a small phone problem. Personally I'm a Android guy so don't care at all what Apple sells or don't sell, but unfortunately other companies follow whatever that fruit company does so I guess I still have to care what they do ;\
I bought one of the last few Zenfone 10s you can find these days. Gonna run it til can't run at all anymore. Once it dies, I think that'll just be the Universe telling me to give up the internet, make a cabin in the woods and live off grid til the world burns.
I'm using an Iphone 13 mini for work and was pleasantly surprised by its "small" size compared to 90% of phones out there, it feels really nice to have a phone that you can actually use with only one hand + the light weight and less occupied space is very welcome. I know it's a small market, but someone should still occupy that space. I was actually interested in the Zenphones because of the size.
Things have gotten crazy, that I'm seriously considering getting a dumb phone for its form factor, but guess what, Nokia feature phones have bloated physically too. RIP small phones (flagship or not) Honor 8, Asus Zenfome 5, S10e all have served me well.
iknoww rightt. Previous zenfones' design were iconic you could immediately tell it was zenfone by the size and design. Now they look like just another big ass phone
I am from Croatia and the year the 12 mini droped I started collage. I saw at least 10 of the mini iPhones in every class I had. People absolutely loved them.
@@Nathan-Higgers_13 You'll see many in these comments saying otherwise, and lamenting it's discontinuation. I upgraded to the mini from a Pro Max, couldn't be happier with it - unless it was a newer mini.
I love my 5.4” iphone 13 mini so much I bought a backup one when I heard they were gonna stop making them 😖. Usually I’d be itching for an upgrade but I’m sticking with my small phones until the wheels come off.
Still using a pixel 5. Bought an 8 and hated the extra size. So I went back to the 5. If they make a new 9 or 10 in the same form as the 5, I'm in ....
I think one aspect of it is that people like me, who want smaller phones, also don't have a lot of interest in getting a new phone until their current one stops working
This is exactly what I was thinking. I'm not trying to use my phone to replace my laptop, my phone is a distant second device. I don't care about being "bold" and "showy" with my phone, so I don't need it to be big and so I'm also not someone who will want to get the latest one every year or 2. I've got the zenfone 8 and apart from battery life I just can't think of a reason to replace it. I think practical people are the ones that want small phones, and such people are also more likely to use laptops or desktops as a primary device instead of their phone and thus don't need the latest qualcom processor, are more likely to use a real camera instead of buying the newest phone for its cameras, and so on.
@@rerigan I don't see any comments about small hands. I do agree with the hypothesis mentioned above. There are pragmatics and fashion victims, the pragmatics stick with their phones for at least 5 years.
@@rerigan people who use there phones for everything regardless of hand size usually lean towards a big phone, because they can be more productive and movies, videos, tiktock ect look better. where as people who only use there computers for everything.......and only use there phones on there lunch break at work usually go for smaller phones.
I will use my 13 mini until it's too slow to be practical for anything. I'm so mad Apple got rid of it. I firmly believe it's because it cost them a little bit more to make the smaller phone, the same way as before smart phones, it used to be the small phones that were more expensive. At least in Canada, Apple didn't really advertise the mini and I can't tell you how many people have complained about the size of phones and I showed him mine and they're blown away. They don't know it exists.
This is so true. They should stop trying to update their "smaller" lineup every year. The sales figure shows the second launch doesn't sell well and it's obviously because people bought the first one and are not thinking of buying another one.
Been using my iPhone SE (original 2016) until its last breath. Next week I'm getting a 13 mini and intend to hold on to it until the heat death of the universe.
Hope your SE lasts for a little while! mine's been bugging more and more with crashes (problem connecting cpu and peripherals) lately, but it's been with me since 2017.
@@rick1901 no oled, bigger, smaller screen, (bezels), weaker camera etc. ..The 13 mini is kind of perfect, at least for me. Had the SE2020 before and never liked it.
i see, for me the SE was already considerably smaller than my previous phone, and I liked the retro feeling of the physical home button. On top of that the SE was a lot cheaper for me. Specs like the camera i don't really care for, just extras. Oled is nice tho!@@imresomodi4961
I’m glad I convinced an older man he should purchase the 13 mini he preferred over the standard 14. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to buy a new last gen phone, but preferred the small size. I was quite pleased to tell him they both had the same chip and would likely have the same length of support.
There is a _slight_ chip difference - base 14 and 14 Plus have the same SOC as the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, which differs from the 13 mini and 13 in terms of +1 GPU core and 6GB vs 4GB Ram. But this won't matter to him at all :) - or to me. Do I want more GPU? Yes. Do I want more RAM? Yes. Do I want a phone again requiring two-handed operation? No. (Large models I've had from new include 6 Plus, 7 Plus, (X doesn't count so much as large, had that too) 12 Pro Max.)
I feel like part of the problem is that the venn diagram of the type of people who want a small phone and the type of people to keep their phone until it is borderline unusable is a circle. We aren't buying a new phone every year like they want us to.
For six years, I've been very happy with my Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact, but today, thanks partly to your review about it, I'm receiving an Asus Zenfone 9. I despaired that Sony didn't continue to make a compact phone and it took me almost a whole day to find a phone with the specs I want: Pocket-sized format, headphone jack, side-mounted fingerprint reader for one-handed unlocking, stereo speakers. Perhaps the market for small phones is mainly older people, like me, and we're a shrinking market. In another few years, I hope at least one manufacturer takes the plunge and releases a suitable replacement. 😉
It's definitely a Millennial niche. The actual older people all go for the big phones because they have bad vision. I'm rocking a Jelly2. I think those willing so settle for something like the Jelly2 will always have some options, but it sure is getting bad out there. Here's hoping for a retro Zoomer revival.
@@sprockkets Despite being wrong on the number of years, he did say “Plus”, not “Max”, though he’s still technically wrong. iPhone 6+ through 8+ had 5.5” screens. Still bigger than the Mini’s 5.4” screen, but still crazy how close they are.
@@SirSethery the bezels are doing the magic. I bought my GF 2.gen SE and I bought her after two years of horrible battery 13 mini That phone has bigger screen and still is smaller than 2.gen SE.
@@SirSetheryfair point thank you. But also the iPhone 8 Plus was sold until 2020 (although 256gb was discontinued in 2019. But yeah, what I was trying to say was how close they were. Thanks for getting that across more clearly :)
as an iphone mini owner, people always were asking me why I had such an "old" phone. dimension is the most recognizable design advance in iphone aestethic and this is what I think killed it.
grabbed a brand new s10e last year. I think it may be my last smartphone sadly. I don't ask for a flagship mini but even mid range options are too big. Even if the brand have a giant lowrange or midrange lineup they are all big.
I got my 12 mini in August 2021 and I still absolutely love it. The only downside is the battery isn't great but I barely ever need to use it for long periods of time, and if I do I have the MagSafe battery which keeps it going all day - the only time it failed to do that is one day last year when I was on holiday in Paris and had my camera open basically the whole day. Apart from that, I love it, I love being able to use my phone with one hand if my hands are full, I love that it feels like a PHONE rather than a small tablet. I will keep using this thing for as long as I possibly can! My only regret is that I didn't wait another month or so to get the 13 mini - but you know what, I love the dark blue colour of my 12 mini and I even managed to get the series 6 Apple Watch in the matching blue colour. I love them both!!
@@Growlizing 100%! Being a girl as well we have very small pockets - if we have any! I had a 6S Plus before and it was just annoying that it never fit into my pockets. I much prefer a small phone mostly for that reason!
I wish that they would come out with a mini 16 120hz. I know that is not going to happen. I actually prefer smaller phones also. I found that you actually use it less often. I dont need to use my phone 12 hours in a Day.
This is honestly so so sad. Seeing that big zenfone 11 made me feel so devastated, as if we lost some grand battle. Immediately after watching your review, I got myself a Zenfone 9 and I love it and use it every single day. It's an absolute gem: killer specs in a compact one-handed size, just like you mentioned. I got friends and acquaintances asking what kind of phone it is and asking to hold it to this very day. Got a Zenfone 10 for my mom's birthday and she's loving it as well. I hoped that with all the support that I've seen for the Zenfone 9/10 phones that Asus could keep on carrying the torch of being the last true high-end compact phone manufacturer, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. I still have hope that the zenfone 11 is something they experiment with and come back to the compact phone formula, as I'm not sure what phone I'll be getting after the Zenfone 9 dies on me (seems unlikely). Definitely a Zenfone 10 just for the refresh, but how long will that last? We need to know that there is a compact phone manufacturer out there, that has our back.
Unfortunately in my book Zenfone 9 is a really hard pass at this point due to Asus' extremely poor software support. The 9 is scheduled to run out of support this year. Even on the 10, the revised four years of security updates is on par with devices that cost half the money. On that note, I also think the Zenphone was just way too expensive. My theory is, that people who want small phones don't really care that much about max specs, and with a smaller pricetag and e.g. a slower processor, it would've sold better.
Yeah, I remember how happy I was with my Xperia tipo! Credit-card-sized pretty baby... Had to change it eventually, because the android version became obsolete, and most apps could no longer work with it, and hardware could barely handle newer OS from a custom build. Modern idea of a 'compact phone' is sick, it's like 'if it's smaller than your laptop, then it's probably compact'. :( Yes, I know, I'm in 'minority niche market', but can we really be ignored that much?
My generation (xennial) grew up with both analog and digital stuff. The thing I loved about tech advancement is the ability to make things smaller, more efficient, portable, and can do more stuff. Taking "small" out of the equation is disappointing. There was nothing cooler than a small phone in ur pocket. Now we have to walk around with bricks. If I want a big screen to watch / play / read books stuff, there is an ipad, a tablet .. even a laptop.. On the other hand, everyone wants to call someone (the least used function in a phone nowadays), watch a movie, read a book, play a game, etc. All-in-one devices need a bigger screen. Well there is always my laptop for that stuff. But that's just me :)
As a millennial I still carry on a tablet, a phone and my iPod Classic. I tried the all-in-one-device life and honestly I don't get how people can enjoy that. The only reasons I have an iPhone Pro Max are the cameras and the fact tha twith my gigantic thumbs it's more comfortable for writing messages...but it lives 80% of time in a backpack or on my desk...I literally can't use it as much as many people do without my hands hurting and my eyes drying...
Agreed I don't need a phone to do everything. I prefer using my laptop to watch stuff like movies or online videos or play games. I mainly use my phone for simple tasks like texting and calling or doing internet searches while I'm out and about.
the next iphone SE should be the mini size. This will help differentiate between the regular iPhone models while satisfying the community who wants smaller phones. I think the trend towards bigger and bigger tablet-like phones is very bad.
A lot of carriers were offering SE for $200 which put it in a completely different price bracket. The SE2020 sold well despite its size because it was the only way people on a budget could get a new iPhone (which is everything to people in the US). Small phones just don't sell.
Oh, that's because the government put strict and ever-increasing economy and emissions regulations on cars and imposed heavy penalties for violating the rules (the CAFE Standards), but not so much for trucks which are often used for commercial purposes. Carmakers don't like risking getting massive fines, so they responded by making nearly every car something that could be classified as a light truck, like crossovers, SUVs, and minivans. Now 80% of all cars sold are "light trucks." It's one of many plans to save the planet that had the opposite affect.
It's because corporations in late stage capitalism don't want to supply us with the products we actually need. Instead they manufacture demand for wasteful overly big products.
The car issue is beyond car makers hands, they just work with a legal loophole that let's them make big cars. The small car/truck thing is a 1970s tariff issue and 30 years later a EV push/environmental law gone wrong. You can import a small vehicle but it has to be 25 years or older lol.
I have fkn tiny hands and I just upgraded to a zenfone 9 and this is the absolute biggest phone i can handle without it getting uncomfortable to use, im so disappointed that this is probably going to be my last confortable phone, and one-handed mode just doesnt cut it. From what i read from other small phone users, we tend to use our phones to the bitter end and dont upgrade until we absolutely have to, hell my last phone was a galaxy s8. I really hope someone makes a small flagship in like 4-5 years, and that would be just in time for my next upgrade
The weird thing is that they invented foldable displays and didn't use them to reduce phone sizes. Instead these phones have the size of a small tablet when they are opened.
I literally just bought myself a new zenfone 10 a couple of days ago... I was looking for a top level form factor and I had to buy an old model to get that comfort choice... a shame not many people are looking for them I've always a fan of the sony compact line and now the xperia 5 models are getting too big too (plus I hate the weird screen ratio) This is what everyone defined a little amazing phone plus with the 16g of ram I can emulate console all day (best purchase ever)
I miss when a 5.5 inch screen was considered large. When I had my Oneplus One, that's as far as I wanted to go and I still stand by that. It's tough trying to find anything now that's both compact and uses a headphone jack
@@Alessandro-K333 Dude. first off the Sony is 6,1 not 5,5. second of all it uses 21:9 aspect ratio. It might have a headphone jack but it’s missing all the other stuff.
I remember the first cell phones. We cycled from larger to smaller as smaller was better. Then that reversed. We went from PDAs to phones and we went from using a stylus to no stylus and many are going back again. We went from bigger phones to flip phones, and now flip/foldable. What is old is new again.
It's moreso the tech is improving so devs are making the old stuff better. But yes, trends do tend to cycle. But are we going to make old phones like what we had before the 2000s? Probably not. We may want to reduce our dependence on tech and use an actual older phone but it will never be new phones to have that same stuff. The closet someone will get to a "small" phone will be flip/fold touch screens which are a lot smaller than the larger Pros/Ultras.
On the other side the use case evolved. The old large phones (early 90's) were used to talk and send SMS. Later phones (end of 90's) were much smaller but still used for the same thing. Today's phones are used to watch videos, browse online content, edit pictures, play games, ... As such they need a bigger screen and battery.
Phones got taller which gives the illusion of "bigger" when you see the screen size specs. My 5.7" Galaxy Note 3 has the exact same screen width as my 6.9" Galaxy N20U.
I blame the shareholders and customers! The same reason SUVs are the new norm. Bigger means bigger margins. And in the eyes of consumers, bigger = better.
I just recently discovered my old Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, turned it on and browsed my music for some 20-30 minutes. After some minutes I was already accustomed to the small screen. I then put it back and turned on my Pixel 4a, which is considered compact. I thought the damn thing was far too huge. If people were forced to use smaller screen phones - they would get used to it very fast.
I still have a Samsung Galaxy A3 (first gen) with a 4.5" screen and sometimes I pick it up and use it for a few hours. After that my (in today's standards) compact Xiaomi Mi 9 SE with its 5.97" screen feels so big 😅.
Thanks Marques. I was wondering as I tried to buy my uncle a smaller sized screen smartphone why I couldn’t find anything on the Samsung store. You answered all my questions in one video! RIP small phones. You will be missed !
Better Hardware with better battery life. If I could get the same hardware and same level of battery life from a compact phone, I would buy it in a heart beat.
Because I have big hands. Because I can navigate maps better when driving. Because I'm a power user and like to flick through my phone quickly, and doing that on a small screen is difficult when your hands are cramped into a smaller place. Because more content fits on my screen with less scrolling. Because movies and videos are on larger display so myself and others can easier watch whatevers on my phone. Want more?
And still, the 1% of the population that prefers and buys small phones account for 99% of the comments in any video that discusses phone size. (% numbers slightly exaggerated to make a point.)
@@olivierthebatno it's not. Don't just look at the plain screen size. A 15 Pro Max is literally the same size as the Zenfone 10. And that is considered compact
This is so depressing. I don't want to spend $700 on a phone but I would buy the Zenfone 10 just to have a skinnier phone IF it wasn't GSM only, but the GSM carriers aren't very good where I live.
When I worked for Sony, the Compact line of flagships were generally my favourites. I used them as my daily phone for work. But they just didn't really sell, even though the specs were the same as the full-size flagship people just assumed it was inferior because it was smaller
I liked Ericsson over Nokia back in the 90s/early 00s, then the smaller series Sony Ericsson (i.e. had the mini pro/mango for a long while). Then the compact series was king on my part (I do think it had a GiB less ram? than the original sized ones). They did some janky thing where if you unlocked the phone the camera would not be high quality any more, for some odd weird Sony Ericsson reason. But it's probably true that there isn't much of a market for smaller phones any more. 😕
I delayed as much as i could to leave my old phone behind.. I could use it with one hand, but it got so slow it was impossible to continue with it and i had to buy a new one. These days, 6.5-inch screens are the standard-unbelievable. They're so big and cumbersome. I would stick to the old one forever if I could, but unfortunately, I can't.
As someone who daily drives an iPhone 12 mini its sad to see small smartphones die. I think the reason people want bigger and bigger phones is more and more people don't own a personal computer and do everything on their smartphone so a bigger screen just works better for them unfortunately.
I really only use my PC for gaming now. So this is true for me and most people as far as I know. Phones are most people's main computers at the end of the day.
Yeah. People use to make fun of me too. I've always loved the Note. But I would always tell them, small screen is going to be history one day. I'm talking about iPhone 3 and 4 time. I make fun of them now because they all use a big phone. But I think Samsung Galaxy S size phones are going to get popular again within the next 10 years.
Also worth Note-ing (see what I did there) that phone screen sizes have steadily crept up across the board. The Galaxy S24, for example, has a bigger screen than the original Note. In fact, back in those days it may have been considered a phablet.
Brooooooo. The OG note was a fat phone for its time lmao. i think we can still call it fat today. i loved it. my mum thought i was going over the top when i got it. called it unnecessary and showing off 😭
I think the tag "mini" is what compels users to refrain from them and opt for the max and the pro's. Remove the tag mini and sell it as IPhone 12/13 (mini but without the tag) with the other line ups being Pro and Pro max.
You might be onto something. If they just referred to it by screen size and made a point of mentioning how it was the same spec, people would probably still be down. The older small iPhones were always reduced spec, and I bet you people thought that the minis were an SE type deal. Apple couldn't of botched them any worse. In Canada they released the 12 mini several weeks later than the regular iPhone so it's no surprise most people who really wanted to upgrade already did. Then I talked to so many people who mentioned wanting a smaller phone and I showed him mine and they were surprised because they didn't even know it existed.
The thing is the 12 mini would have been such a great phone with huge sales I know so many who would have gotten one but the biggest problem ist that it was a 12mini not a 12 mini pro with the better features and the better cam
My people. I was waiting until the release of iPhone 15 to get a 13 Mini at a reduced price, but they just flat out stopped selling them. So I caved and got a regular 15. I'm a guy with probably average or slightly smaller than average hands, and it is a little hard to use with one hand without minor shifting. Wish I could've gotten a 15 Mini :(
That's another problem with small phones. A lot of people who buy them are also people who are more practically inclined. They don't chase clout with the biggest and most expensive, they are more likely to seek deals and keep phones working for a long time. Which, in turn, kills new small phones.
I love my 13 mini. But when I went to get it the cell shop rep was reeeeally pushing me to get the bigger/regular sized one. Probably cause they make commission and the bigger ones cost more. I have a hunch this is why the mini did not do as well as thought even though it was well received.
Same, when my 13 mini got stolen I went to get a Xiaomi Note 11 (cheapest I could find lol, also has a massive screen), the sales person was all about how she would buy the Pro Max with the biggest screen if she possibly could. I literally facepalmed lol, but I she looked like the kind of person whose phone is her only screen.
Cell phone reps make the bulk of their commission from the plans and service they sell you. Not the phone. Cell phone carriers make $0 when they sell you a phone, it’s all recouped through the service
I work in a computer/cell phone repair shop, and we see elderly people come in all the time with a brand new 15 pro max because the sales rep pushed it so damn hard for his commission. One person just had the usual charging issue where lint and dirt get packed into the lightning port, and the sales rep told this older lady that the charging port was fried and she needed a...... you guessed it, 512GB iPhone 15 Pro Max. (we cleaned the port for free and sent her back to that sales rep to get refunded, I'm sure he got an earful too)
Honestly, as a female with small-ish hands, I desperately NEED a good small phone that is globally available. The number of times my phone has tumbled out of my hands trying to reach the corner with one hand is insane. 😭
I don't know how big your "small" hands are because I have big hands and I CANNOT reach the other side; I HAVE to use two hands I can barely reach 2/3 across with a normal grip
Same. I adore my 13 mini. Giving serious thought to swapping to the Samsung Flip. Might wait to see what Apple do. I need a phone that fits in teeny women’s pockets and I can use one handed.
@@karolislatakas137 Yeah next time I update my phone, I'll definitely go for the latest base model they have (if they maintain the size 🤞🏼). I had an iPhone X which was wonderful for my hands, then went to get an S21 FE (best I could afford at the time. The Google pixel 6A was a competitor but I was in India at the time and their service in India wasn't the best) and this thing is definitely not comfortable 😭
@@user-kr5vm8nk1d IKR! I too am considering the flip phones because they're so darn cute Hehe but I feel like they might be too tall as well when opened. I'll have to go to a store and do a hands on test.
When there was a rumor about an S24 mini I absolutely got 100% ready to get that phone Had all I would want on a phone and then some, presumably. Then...as life'd have it it was all just a rumor
Oh I feel so sorry for it. Phones sized like the iPhone mini series are just perfect for me. Really sad there was no demand for those types of phones and they get to be discontinued
That's why I'm still using Sony Xperia. It's still large, but it's tall instead of wide. Can use it with one hand still, and fits in the pockets very well.
If only Xperia 5 lineup doesn't have so much lightsaber issues, it'll be a good investment for long term. The fact it has better camera than the Zenfone when shooting manually (auto mode is on the horizon of being bad), a dedicated shutter button which I love, micro-sd support and big battery in that small compact size with the 21:9 ratio. Luckily both have the headphone jack. However the 2 years software support and the initial selling price kind of doing its demise. (That's also the reason why I had to go for the Xperia 1 lineup after my replacement Xperia 5ii unit launch a star wars battle whenever I turn on the screen, which the exact same problem with the initial unit)
@@5nak_music that's good news and rejoice Xperia users! But here in the Asia region 5ii are famous for their OLED issues, there are some 5iii which get it but significantly decreased compared to 5ii
@@hhh5377 Sony aren't serious about selling smartphones. Why is their cheapest smartphone $500? I love their Quad DACs but I even second hand Xperias are expensive.
Me rocking a 5.7 inch Pixel 4, though at times I’d love a bigger screen real estate, but man oh man nothing can beat the comfort of a small form factor phone
I just grabbed an open box, top line Zenfone 10 based largely off your review, it was hard to find one, but seeing this now makes it worth it rather than waiting for the next generation of the Zenfone.
@@carlito99taiwan I'm babying my Zenfone 10 by using a "slow" charger from my Sony XZ1 Compact so that battery will last longer, it's a sad day for us that like pocketable phones.
I bought Zenfone 8 due to compact size, but it's bricking now, motherboards are damaging on their own for many people and Asus is not taking the responsibility for it, ..Many people are facing this issue, wifi hotspot not working, Many of them just bricking randomly!
Just looked it up, 800eur....pass! I cannot justify price like that. Why e just dont get more options in 300-400eur price? Going to 6.7" Xiaomi 13T, mainly because good cameras and 400eur price range
As a cyclist I like to carry my mobile in my jersey rear pocket…the trouble is phones have got bigger and bigger, to the point where my cycling jerseys can’t cope. I’d really like something small and light, but such phones are a rare breed now. 😢
I think its just the S/M/L effect. Having the mini be marketed as a mini and just being $100 less makes most folks think that it has worse value than the regular iPhone. Makes it even worse when you consider most folks are looking at the 24 month installment and $100 only adds about $4 a month.
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
For someone with tiny raccoon like fingers, I will keep my 13 mini going until it turns to dust.
THE GREATEST TECHNICIAN (with the smallest hands) THATS EVER LIVED
Same here with my 12 mini, love that thing and didn‘t even realize Apple discontinued the mini iPhones
Who would have thought that the greatest technician that ever lived watch the greatest reviewer that ever lived
You have 2 hands. Problem solved
But that lightning connector is gonna haunt us
Marques is the type of person who builds a custom coffin for a phone just to make a statement.
We saw that coffin review earlier
Edit: Sorry I thought you were talking about the big red coffin
@@852rm You did naat!?
@@852rm it was about the big one, not the small one if I remember correctly.
@@ashish_sunnyhe has a video reviewing random things
@@ashish_sunny i guess he's talking about the small one...
I also think there's a correlation between people who get small phones and people who don't upgrade their phone very much.
Came here to say the same thing
yeah, i had the 12 mini and only just upgraded to an s24, but if i was less of a power user i could happily have made it to 6 years
@@hvrbros8730im gonna keep my 12 mini for as long as possible
I’m still using my iphone SE
This is why the Zenfone failed. It's pretty much the same size as the S23/Pixel 8/iPhone 15, but those offer 5 more years of software support. Asus is just a hardware manufacturer. They profit from people buying a phone every year.
i live with a severe muscle disease and these big phones are just too difficult to use, it sucks having essentially ZERO options
I'm watching this from the Samsung s23 and I think it's small enough at 6.1 inches
I just bought the iphone se 3 because I needed to upgrade from a 8 plus to a better phone on a budget. I got it on ebay I only payed $161
@@Peaches10608
6 inches is still pretty big for some folks including me.
Marques: I’d like to order a coffin. (1.5 X 0.75) feet
Coffin shop: But for what?
Marques: It’s complicated
baby coffin lol
@@petervansan1054 lol?
@@petervansan1054babies are not that small, maybe fetus
coffin shop: but for what?
marques: for the dead. 🤷🏻♂️
Marques: "You wouldn't get it"
Marques got an excuse to use the coffin (casket) again lol
@Mr.Tiger444 stop playing
Stop playing games and get a job to support your family@Mr.Tiger444
@Mr.Tiger444 What good does this message do on someone else's videos? I see you make videos, why don't you make a video asking for support from your viewers- not someone else's.
@Mr.Tiger444 nobody cares
😂
"Reachable from corner to corner and doesn't require huge pockets".
That's what I really miss. 😢
I don't. Small phones are dumb and everyone knows that. Good riddance.
@@beardsntools
ok
@@beardsntoolsSpeak for yourself, I love my IPhone 12 Mini despite it's compromises, will continue to use it until Apple doesn't support it anymore.
@@beardsntools that's YOUR opinion. Many people actually like the idea of a phone that can be fully used with one hand and can fit COMFORTABLY in a front pocket. For probably the last 6 or more years I've had to buy pants with a side pocket just so I don't have to put my phone in my front pocket.
@@beardsntoolsGood riddance that people with different preferences don't have options?
I'm a wee Japanese lady and work requires me to communicate using their app. Big heavy phones are killing my hands it's so tiring to communicate this way 😭
The best thing you can do right now is to get an old small phone (like the Galaxy S9) and just flash a custom ROM which still get new security updates so you always stay up to date.
It also de-googles your phone and protects your privacy!
@@AkiraTheKittyLover Why would you want to get a newer android. They slow down with updates.
@@n646n Whether we really care about it or not, Android is not perfect; far from it. It's very much vulnerable to attacks. And the ones who get targeted the most often are either the old generation or the gullible new generation.
As such, regular Security Updates are a must have to prevent any kind of software attacks.
One might think: I don't have any people who would go after me, but truthfully, something as simple as charging your phone on an outlet, say, on the metro station, would be more than enough to get access to everything on a vulnerable phone.
Additionally, custom roms are just better as it is open source and some of them are so heavily optimized that I had a smooth experience running one on my Galaxy J6 with only 3 GB RAM! This happens because unlike traditional android phones, these roms do not constantly take and share your personal data, hence not using any RAM. So no, they won't get slower with new updates.
My ADHD arse wrote an entire essay, I'm sorry :(
@@n646nbetter app support and security maybe
found the cat thread !!! meow!
As a current 13 mini user, I’m sad. They should bring them back every like 5 years or something so once our current ones get really old and start dying we can get a new one.
No, they should release a mini version every year.
@@Rodrifuuu From a business perspective, it simply isn't profitable enough to keep it going for large smartphone manufacturers. I honestly don't mind it if they went with that idea.
or they should finally build one to last
crApple doesn`t want you to keep anything for 5 years lol
i wish i got one when they were sold, i can't buy a used one because the scammers where i leave
The irony is that it’s really hard to find these phones on the secondary market because people are desperate to keep them
Despite what the market seems to do, I hear from a lot of people, that they can't find new, small phones.
I would say, 80% of women I know, want a small phone.
I know a few guys, mostly the ones who do labor intensive jobs, they want a small phone what fits into their pockets.
In my view, the perfect formfactor was the LG/Google Nexus 5.
I had this phone twice and loved it.
@@GoalSquad666100% this!
We didn't know about the Zenfone until a year after my wife bought the S21. She has hated the size of the phone since she bought it, but didn't know of any of the good alternatives. She would desperately go back in time and get a Zenfone instead. But it just doesn't make sense for her to upgrade to the Zenfone at this point, since we just spent nearly $1000 on the S21 and it still works perfectly fine.
I can go online now and literally buy a smaller phone, there's loads of them 🤷🏼
@@rich_34 yeah? List out all of the flagship phones that are smaller
No, they just aren't work.
Automatic updates made software too slow, presumedly, because of RAM starvation.
I'm proud to be one of the 5%. It's not that we have tiny hands. It's that our hands didn't get any bigger since 2014
Lol peak hand was reached
As someone who has an iPad, laptop and TV I see no point in having a giant phone. Very inconvenient for me during daily use and I'm a male with average size hands.
Im 6ft tall and have monstrous hands. But I preferred the mini due to needing to do less hand movements
yea, tiny hand or not, having a phone that my hand can hold comfortably is godsent
My hands are huge, but my pockets ain't. So I got an Xcover 5.
I'm still holding onto my 12 mini. I love it and my next phone will probably be the 13 mini (if I can find a new one on ebay). I personally love the small phones and I'm really sad the rest of you don't
😥
That‘s what I feel, too. My next phone will be the 13 mini. I currently habe the SE, the small one. 4.0“
It's a bit of a myth they don't sell well, the entry level plus doesn't sell any better. However it's cheaper to offer an entry level plus than a mini for Apple because they don't have to engineer a new form factor, it's the same as the pro max.
@@boostav A bigger one is not much more expensive to make but fetches a higher price.
Anyway if it is too small I do not like the keyboard with my dull fingers.
i have an se 3 and i swear i was all prepared form my next upgrade to be the zenephone lineup and then they just hit me with this that they are stopping it like comon all i need is one ether a new mini iphone a se with a small screen like now or the zenephone mini to continue i would be happle with any but i just got this iphone se 3 so i will be keeping for a long time but i really hope some company comes in clutch in the next 3 years
Apple, Samsung, and Google, should release a mini like every 3-4 generations. And make it publicly known ahead of time that that's what they're doing.
Then it should actually sell enough to make financial sense and still provide the niche market an option.
Alternatively... they could NOT do that and drive us into settling on a bigger phone with chunkier profit margins... :(
they don't do small smartphone anymore cuz we consume less content in it and they want us to consume as much as possible (only rugged phone can have small size since it's not their goal to have customer consume as much as possible)
@@DERRPANZER size of phone correlates to amount of content we consume?
@@andy.robinson when we have smaller phone we tend to consume content on another devices that have bigger screen (PC TV etc) but on bigger phone we will less likely use another devices to consume content
No one buy small phones, why would they do that?
RIP -FISKER- SMALL PHONES
rip😟
lol
did your mom work for Fisker? @Mr.Tiger444
😂😂😂😅 stop that
Fisker should make phones
Small phone lover here - I can’t help but wonder if the problem is they’re bringing out new small phones *every year* - I know my journey has been iPhone 5s, original iPhone SE, iPhone 7 for a month or two, and I’m now on the SE 2020. I don’t need all of the bells and whistles, so upgrades are more “when necessary” than “when the next shiny thing comes out”.
Maybe if a phone maker just did a new mini phone every 3-4 years, it would see higher sales?
They did it too small which is good for "mini" lovers but it was TOO small for anyone to really consider it for that price. Now when they bump iPhone 16 size a little bigger mini would be a cool choice but it won't happen now.
Maybe the sales guys are responsible too. For larger profits they push the normal phones more than mini ones
have you heard of the jelly 2 by unihertz?
@@davidmeier1004the idea is great but 3" is actually too small for me, if they introduced a 4" phone I would gladly buy it
@@unicestwiacznoworodkow7 look at their upcoming tank mini
I kind of miss my old Sony Xperia Z1 compact, I could use the entire 4.3" screen with one hand. Going from that to the S7 was a noticeable change. I also remember when we used to mock people for using "phablets".
Lmao big screen phones were goofy ash but now its the norm, whole world has gone sweet now
What u think about sony xperia 5 V?
the z1 and z3 compact were my favorite phones! gosh i miss them
@@Zakariia z3 compact, favorite phone of all time, I almost cried when my screen cracked 😭
This video feels like an actual funeral to me.
Small flagships will always be near and dear to my heart.
The world was cruel to you, minis...
You'll be missed, dearly...
I could just cry rn...
I’m a 6 foot 3 man with large hands and won’t give up my 13 mini until there’s a same size replacement. It’s still a gem.
I’m a 6’3” man with tiny little lady hands out of which they’ll have to pry my iPhone 12 mini. Did we just become best friends?
Is there any room for a 6.1 guy with hisbeloved iPhone 13 mini😅
13 Mini is the best phone Apple has ever made.
Just stick a new chip and camera in there and give us the same damn thing. It's perfect.
@@sahidulislamrajan491 just barely 😅
Hopefully they come out with a new SE that will keep the IPhone 13 mini body with upgraded specs
Looking at my iPhone 12 mini on my desk, with a tear on my face. "You're all alone now buddy. Please be resilient, I need you"
“He is not alone…”
- my iPhone 13 mini
I just bought a used 13 mini that still has AppleCare and I'm happy you can buy yearly AppleCare now, so I'm gonna keep mine until it is too slow to be functional. I figure another three or four years at least.
13 mini SE 2 and SE 3
As a woman with small hands, I did not ask for larger screens. My favorite phone I've ever had was a 5" screen with a slide out keyboard that I had in 2011.
THANK YOU, my tiny hands are clumsy and if the phone is too big, I'll just end up dropping it...
I hate typing on these big phone 😭 it hurts.
NOKIA
LG Cookie did that. It was peak design for people with small hands imo.
@@seekittycat You can always change the size of the keyboard.
Speaking on the iPhone 12/13 mini not selling well; one thing I can add is that a lot of carriers wouldn’t recommend and even sometimes (like what happened to me) *discourage* and *lie* about availability of those phones to sell the more expensive and available models. So I, someone who actually asked for that product, wasn't able to buy it due to phone stores and companies not selling the darned thing. Very disappointing that small phones are going away.
very true, I live in a "iPhone dominate" country & have never seen a Mini & when I asked my mom who wishes her phone was smaller (13 Pro), I told her about the Mini's & she didn't know they existed.
Yep. Apple probably wanted it to sell well. The carriers did not. Less money for APple isn't much of an issue but through carriers means less money for carriers too and they don't have to worry about silly things like honesty about the products they sell, like Apple or Samsung do.
That's true. They make more money and big phones consume more data as well. That's what carriers like.
Small iphone isn't popular at all outside tech enthusiasts crowd. Glad it's gone.
I’m only 4’9” and they tried to talk me out of the 13 mini because it’s “too small” when it was actually the perfect size for me
My brother is a small phone guy. He even replaced the battery in his old iPhone SE to keep it going longer. He had a 12 mini and went ahead and upgraded to a 13 mini before it was too late to buy them anymore. I'm guessing he'll keep this thing going for as long as possible.
I've never wanted a small phone but I don't like the size creep on everything in general. I think the 5.8" iPhone X was as big as I'd like a phone to be but then they had to push it up to 6.1" with the 12 pro for some reason.
tell your brother to get a nokia.. having a small phone and an iphone is essentially like a feature phone lol
@@beardsntools If that were true the iphone would have never taken off to begin with. Small smartphones are perfectly capable, not everyone wants a small tablet in their pocket.
Yep, I think X and Xs had perfect size! Maybe even better than 12 and 13 minis
im doing the same thing with a galaxy s10e ive replaced the screen 3x times
@@beardsntools Feature phones lack proper application support, camera quality and security features unlike smartphones. Mini smartphones are literally normal smartphones but smaller - same OS, same applications, same camera
You can pry my iPhone 13 mini from my cold dead hands
As a woman of a smaller frame, this makes me so sad😭
It feels like most modern phones are just designed to give me hand cramps, and I was so happy after I got my Asus, and I was planning on buying future models when this one would eventually die, but it seems like I just gotta rely on my smartphone less
Try the Samsung Galaxy S series! The Galaxy S24 is basically the same size as the Zenfone, and Samsung has kept the length of the phones between 5.5 and 5.99 inches basically for the last 4 or 5 phones they have released. Heck, the S24 is smaller than the S20!
Only Recommendation I can think of is the Sony Xperia 5 Series and even then there is the yearly scare that they will kill it some day
@luisenriqueperezperez3193 i think zen phone is way smaller.. also iphone 15 is almost same size of s24
@@PAshish-dh5fknope, look phonearena it's the same Samsung just have a better display that goes to the edge
@@v.kut7307 yeah... Also iphone 15 too...
As a 13 Mini user, it pains me that we'll never get great small phones ever again... 🙁
It's supported through 2028. You'll be fine.
Same I am a mini user and I am sad
Me three! I wonder if it would’ve been more successful if they made a "Pro Mini" with higher specs… guess we’ll never know 🫡
6.1 inch is good though
same 😢
Still rocking the 13 mini and won't 'upgrade' until its dead dead.
Watching this video on it and I replaced the battery 1 week ago after 2 years of usage
You are smart with your small hands😂😊
man said that like that phone not just 2 measly years old lol
@@Pouimatiomhow long the new battery last now?
I think this here is why the sales look bad. The people who like small phones are more practical and don't buy new phones as often. I still use an s10e just fine.
I miss small phones. I tried to buy one when my old one finally died, but there was literally nothing on the market in my price range.
I am part of the niche that wants small phones, I have an iPhone 13 mini and I'd instantly go to a SE (1st gen) sized phone if it was revamped with new specs.
Why do you like small size better ?
Im not judging just curious
The problem is physics - can't have the exact same functionality in a smaller phone without compromise. Apple were able to get away with it for the first SE phone being a 6S in a smaller factor minus 3D Touch. However with ever evolving technological and user requirements and optimisations being built in, the new SE lineup will be gimped even more in a smaller form factor unless the size is increased, but that brings another issue regarding a higher price. The SE is meant to be much lower priced to differentiate from the flagship models but a price too close to the 15 will kill the sales before the phone is even released.
@@heylliottI'm part of that niche too, for me, it's way easier to grab with one hand, you can easily tap messages with one finger, same for scrolling, my thumb can reach the other side of the screen and like 80% of it is accessible without readjusting my grip on it (I'm using a zenphone 8 with a bumper case).My hands are a bit larger than the average but my fingers are shorter so I can't use a lot of phones one handed now that screens have gotten so big.
I don't need to have a bigger screen cause it is to me more problems, more surface that could break. + Making bigger phones without adding a headphone jack is just useless to me... I'll stick to the zenphone brand but not higher than the 10 or simply stop buying smartphones if I can't stay with these small screens.
same
Already there! SE for life!
Still sticking to my iphone 12 mini and waiting for a good option.
I'll go trough several battery changes before I'll buy one of those phablets.
EXACTLY!
Going to upgrade my SE 1st Gen to a gently used iPhone mini 12 in Red… just hoping it is available on eBay though.
12 Mini is an amazing phone.
Amen 🙏
What if your phone breaks before then?
the mini coffin ⚰️ 💀
They make them that size for a reason.... Damn, it went dark quickly
Mini Coffee Wood Edition
@@joaooliveirarochababies?
@Mr.Tiger444 Please, report him for spam
it's so cute though
I have small hands and big phones are a nightmare for me! I have been using my google pixel 3a for years now and will be crying the day i have to replace it.
As a small phone user (zenfone 9), its an awesome device to use on the go.
When I'm at home I have a laptop/computer for big screen viewing, and even then the smaller phone is easier to hold while reclining.
Please send one to India, we're just bored of gigantic brick all over 6.6 inches pathetic portability in pocket...
The iPhone SE is about the right size phone in width and height for me. Imagine if it was the same without the bezels. The mini was too small I couldn’t type properly lol
Finally found another use for that coffin 😂😂
I'd ask why he kept it but I guess there's not much of a market for "slightly used" coffins.
@@siraaron4462Undertaker might have some
😂😂😂
☠️
Yeah I assumed he sent it back to the company or something. Cool to see it again.
As a Galaxy S23 user,having a phone that is somewhat usable one-handed,lightweight, and pocketable is something I'll miss the more rare these types of phones become.
Yep. I think that S23 is better and smaller than the zenphone so I don't understand mb statement
@viviviontheway what he means is as years have gone on phone sizes have increased to the point where screen sizes above 6" have become the norm. Making the majority of people not even consider the smaller alternatives leading to them being rarer and rarer with each generation. We've become so used to large screens that we forget even the iPhone 6 with a 4.7" screen was considered "big".
@@TheSuperAJTV Thought the topic was about the rip of phones sized like zenphone...
@@viviviontheway due to the fact that display sizes have increased over the years...
It’s totally usable one-handed when you activate one-handed mode
As someone who lived by small phones, it just got to the point where i was too fed up with it. Esp with japanese games the text is like impossible to read, along reading manga, it just caused me to zoom in too much. Switched to a bigger phone and its just so much more pleasent. Maybe if companies used bigger fonts i wouldnt mind so much. (Mainly a jp issue tho, eng text tends to be bigger and clealer)
Personally, the iPhone “Mini” lineup is one of the best form factor you could ask for a phone. Heck you can even text with ease using one hand!
It was perfect
I have a mini what are you on about it sucks typing with that thing especially when you are having a debate in a group chat
@@AlphaCat7 I used to have the same problem with my 12 mini but then i discovered slide to type that actually helps a lot. You could try it out too
They did an awful job marketing the minis. Most people I’ve seen who use them irl falls in love with them and wishes they still made them.
Yep. I haven’t loved a phone as much as I loved my 12 mini. I usually upgrade every year, but if the 13 mini had 120hz, I’d still be using it. 60hz is what made me go back to Pro models.
Well, the “regular” Galaxy S model is actually a pretty small phone comparatively but sells fairly well. The Zenfone is nice but historically it has been been hampered by lack of support for some US frequency bands and a relatively short software support period.
Can't speak for the frequency band issue as I don't live in the US, but the lack of software support is absolutely the anchor that's dragging Zenfone down. For some reason, my family is pro-Zenfone so I've used everything from the old budget Zenfones to flagships and they all have one common denominator: poor OS updates. Generally speaking, I love Zenfone software. It's super light and very close to AOSP, but their support absolutely sucks. Even when they do release an OS update, it's usually buggy as shit and won't get fixes for a few months.
I bought a galaxy s23 after my galaxy s10e died thinking it was a small phone, it isn't
It is not comfortable to use with one hand, it doesn't compare to my s10e
@@JulesJunktrust me it isn't about small hands. Even my fairly bigger hands now thank me for using s23, I could feel discomfort with 6.5 inch phones
Samsung scres it over too, woulda gotten the s24 but opted for the + just because of the storage
they're already starting to bump the size from 6.1 to 6.2 from the s23 to s24
It's a bitter reality that small phones aren't just a rare breed - they are truly extinct now. As a fan of these little gems myself, I find it a real shame that manufacturers are moving towards larger screen sizes without leaving room for variety. But I suppose the market has spoken, and the demand for smaller handsets just isn't there anymore. RIP, small flagships - you'll be missed.
Yeah I don't care about flagship phones at all, just give me a decent budget one and I'll be more than happy. For me the phone is a basic tool that I don't want to take up so much space or cost much at all. And I'm positivt that I'm not alone in this!
Maybe the mini flagship should be a tiny bit bigger not too mini
I think the flip phone somewhat replaces the small phones, although losing some durability and having to deal with a cumbersome flip everytime, flip phones provide a bigger screen with still a small package you can put in your pocket
Why people aren't buying small phones. I also loved the idea of the iPhone Mini and when it was time to buy an iPhone 13, I was struggling between the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 13 mini. I went for the iPhone 13 which I am still using to this day. The reality is, that there are too many drawbacks of a mini phone, like the smaller display and the shorter battery life. It is lighter and easier to hold but the regular size and even the Pro Max or Plus iPhone can easily fit in my pocket. The price drop also isn't that substantial for me to consider a mini phone. So I miss the iPhone mini but I am also the murderer.
@@VincentLeong-bb4vn Wouldn't say that the smaller screen is a drawback, it's a feature! Shorter battery life can be mitigated by a slightly thicker phone (not really that big of a deal for me) and better optimized software. The price though is a Apple problem, not a small phone problem.
Personally I'm a Android guy so don't care at all what Apple sells or don't sell, but unfortunately other companies follow whatever that fruit company does so I guess I still have to care what they do ;\
I bought one of the last few Zenfone 10s you can find these days. Gonna run it til can't run at all anymore. Once it dies, I think that'll just be the Universe telling me to give up the internet, make a cabin in the woods and live off grid til the world burns.
I'm using an Iphone 13 mini for work and was pleasantly surprised by its "small" size compared to 90% of phones out there, it feels really nice to have a phone that you can actually use with only one hand + the light weight and less occupied space is very welcome.
I know it's a small market, but someone should still occupy that space. I was actually interested in the Zenphones because of the size.
Things have gotten crazy, that I'm seriously considering getting a dumb phone for its form factor, but guess what, Nokia feature phones have bloated physically too.
RIP small phones (flagship or not)
Honor 8, Asus Zenfome 5, S10e all have served me well.
Proud 13 mini owner here. Bought just 1 year ago. I love all aspects except on the camera there is no 2x or 3x optical zoom.
I think I should change to iPhone mini...
I just finally found a 13 mini in mint condition and upgraded from a 12 mini 1 month ago. Loving the 13 mini even more. So so right in every way.
yes come on man iphone 13 mini man i love it and would never change it until it doesnt support latest ios updates
Typing this from my 13 Mini. Yes, perfect size! But I got it when they came out so the battery is getting wonky.
13 mini user here too!
I had the 12 mini and then upgraded to the 13 mini and still have it to this day. I'll keep it around for a couple more years
do you see any real difference between these two phones?
@@RapManCZI had both, the 13 mini has a much better battery. Other than that, no difference.
Same
"the VOID is now open"
Such a perfect line to end such theme! I'm keeping hopeful about a new ~5" flagship phone or something...
Asus last year : Small and beautiful
This year: Big and ugly
Just like me when I grew up
But it's sales will be higher than the mini phones.
@@Tatsuki09 lol nice one
@@rishirajsaikia1323No, it won't. Now it will fight with Galaxy S series etc. Even the ROG will outsell it.
iknoww rightt. Previous zenfones' design were iconic you could immediately tell it was zenfone by the size and design. Now they look like just another big ass phone
I am from Croatia and the year the 12 mini droped I started collage. I saw at least 10 of the mini iPhones in every class I had. People absolutely loved them.
you saw mini iPhones cuz they were cheaper and students can't afford big ones....
@@sidtalks2885 then that is the market they should try to become leaders of na. But they didn't strategize it such
the small iPhone is trash
@@Nathan-Higgers_13🧢
@@Nathan-Higgers_13 You'll see many in these comments saying otherwise, and lamenting it's discontinuation. I upgraded to the mini from a Pro Max, couldn't be happier with it - unless it was a newer mini.
I love my 5.4” iphone 13 mini so much I bought a backup one when I heard they were gonna stop making them 😖. Usually I’d be itching for an upgrade but I’m sticking with my small phones until the wheels come off.
Still using a pixel 5. Bought an 8 and hated the extra size. So I went back to the 5. If they make a new 9 or 10 in the same form as the 5, I'm in ....
I think one aspect of it is that people like me, who want smaller phones, also don't have a lot of interest in getting a new phone until their current one stops working
This is exactly what I was thinking. I'm not trying to use my phone to replace my laptop, my phone is a distant second device. I don't care about being "bold" and "showy" with my phone, so I don't need it to be big and so I'm also not someone who will want to get the latest one every year or 2. I've got the zenfone 8 and apart from battery life I just can't think of a reason to replace it.
I think practical people are the ones that want small phones, and such people are also more likely to use laptops or desktops as a primary device instead of their phone and thus don't need the latest qualcom processor, are more likely to use a real camera instead of buying the newest phone for its cameras, and so on.
@@rerigan I don't see any comments about small hands.
I do agree with the hypothesis mentioned above. There are pragmatics and fashion victims, the pragmatics stick with their phones for at least 5 years.
@@rerigan people who use there phones for everything regardless of hand size usually lean towards a big phone, because they can be more productive and movies, videos, tiktock ect look better. where as people who only use there computers for everything.......and only use there phones on there lunch break at work usually go for smaller phones.
I will use my 13 mini until it's too slow to be practical for anything. I'm so mad Apple got rid of it. I firmly believe it's because it cost them a little bit more to make the smaller phone, the same way as before smart phones, it used to be the small phones that were more expensive. At least in Canada, Apple didn't really advertise the mini and I can't tell you how many people have complained about the size of phones and I showed him mine and they're blown away. They don't know it exists.
This is so true. They should stop trying to update their "smaller" lineup every year. The sales figure shows the second launch doesn't sell well and it's obviously because people bought the first one and are not thinking of buying another one.
Been using my iPhone SE (original 2016) until its last breath.
Next week I'm getting a 13 mini and intend to hold on to it until the heat death of the universe.
Hope your SE lasts for a little while! mine's been bugging more and more with crashes (problem connecting cpu and peripherals) lately, but it's been with me since 2017.
SE 2020 version. Never understood the need for big phones. They are heavier, cause hand/wrist pain, easier to get stolen. 4.7 inches is the sweet spot
why not get the se 2022? Any reason?
@@rick1901 no oled, bigger, smaller screen, (bezels), weaker camera etc. ..The 13 mini is kind of perfect, at least for me. Had the SE2020 before and never liked it.
i see, for me the SE was already considerably smaller than my previous phone, and I liked the retro feeling of the physical home button. On top of that the SE was a lot cheaper for me. Specs like the camera i don't really care for, just extras. Oled is nice tho!@@imresomodi4961
I’m glad I convinced an older man he should purchase the 13 mini he preferred over the standard 14. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to buy a new last gen phone, but preferred the small size. I was quite pleased to tell him they both had the same chip and would likely have the same length of support.
There is a _slight_ chip difference - base 14 and 14 Plus have the same SOC as the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, which differs from the 13 mini and 13 in terms of +1 GPU core and 6GB vs 4GB Ram. But this won't matter to him at all :) - or to me. Do I want more GPU? Yes. Do I want more RAM? Yes. Do I want a phone again requiring two-handed operation? No. (Large models I've had from new include 6 Plus, 7 Plus, (X doesn't count so much as large, had that too) 12 Pro Max.)
I feel like part of the problem is that the venn diagram of the type of people who want a small phone and the type of people to keep their phone until it is borderline unusable is a circle. We aren't buying a new phone every year like they want us to.
also people say they love a small phone, and i'm sure they do. when they actually buy a phone, it's a big phone.
For six years, I've been very happy with my Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact, but today, thanks partly to your review about it, I'm receiving an Asus Zenfone 9. I despaired that Sony didn't continue to make a compact phone and it took me almost a whole day to find a phone with the specs I want: Pocket-sized format, headphone jack, side-mounted fingerprint reader for one-handed unlocking, stereo speakers. Perhaps the market for small phones is mainly older people, like me, and we're a shrinking market. In another few years, I hope at least one manufacturer takes the plunge and releases a suitable replacement. 😉
It's definitely a Millennial niche. The actual older people all go for the big phones because they have bad vision. I'm rocking a Jelly2. I think those willing so settle for something like the Jelly2 will always have some options, but it sure is getting bad out there. Here's hoping for a retro Zoomer revival.
Watching this video and replying to your comment on my xz1c, long live the king.
Crazy thing is that the mini iPhones had LARGER screens than the largest "Plus" iPhones from two years prior!
Um.... in what universe is the iphone xs max screen at 6.46 inches not bigger than the mini at 5.4 bro?
@@sprockkets
Despite being wrong on the number of years, he did say “Plus”, not “Max”, though he’s still technically wrong. iPhone 6+ through 8+ had 5.5” screens. Still bigger than the Mini’s 5.4” screen, but still crazy how close they are.
@@SirSethery
the bezels are doing the magic.
I bought my GF 2.gen SE and I bought her after two years of horrible battery 13 mini
That phone has bigger screen and still is smaller than 2.gen SE.
@@SirSetheryfair point thank you. But also the iPhone 8 Plus was sold until 2020 (although 256gb was discontinued in 2019.
But yeah, what I was trying to say was how close they were. Thanks for getting that across more clearly :)
@JoshuaVarghese just want clarification that's all
as an iphone mini owner, people always were asking me why I had such an "old" phone.
dimension is the most recognizable design advance in iphone aestethic and this is what I think killed it.
100% not having the pro name
The 12 mini isn't even that old. Do these people expect you to upgrade every 2 years or some shit?
@@person.w9780 carrier contracts are on 2 years so most of the people upgrade every 2 years if they bought over the carrier package
i have the 13 mini and 0 people have asked me that question. who are these judgmental people in your life lol
@@person.w9780no, they expect you to buy every new thing apple puts out the moment it comes out lol
grabbed a brand new s10e last year. I think it may be my last smartphone sadly. I don't ask for a flagship mini but even mid range options are too big. Even if the brand have a giant lowrange or midrange lineup they are all big.
I got my 12 mini in August 2021 and I still absolutely love it. The only downside is the battery isn't great but I barely ever need to use it for long periods of time, and if I do I have the MagSafe battery which keeps it going all day - the only time it failed to do that is one day last year when I was on holiday in Paris and had my camera open basically the whole day. Apart from that, I love it, I love being able to use my phone with one hand if my hands are full, I love that it feels like a PHONE rather than a small tablet. I will keep using this thing for as long as I possibly can! My only regret is that I didn't wait another month or so to get the 13 mini - but you know what, I love the dark blue colour of my 12 mini and I even managed to get the series 6 Apple Watch in the matching blue colour. I love them both!!
Same, its so _nice_ having it smoothly fit in any pocket and using it comfortably with one hand.
@@Growlizing 100%! Being a girl as well we have very small pockets - if we have any! I had a 6S Plus before and it was just annoying that it never fit into my pockets. I much prefer a small phone mostly for that reason!
I wish that they would come out with a mini 16 120hz. I know that is not going to happen. I actually prefer smaller phones also. I found that you actually use it less often. I dont need to use my phone 12 hours in a Day.
8:33 I really like how he use that casket from the casket review video
This is honestly so so sad. Seeing that big zenfone 11 made me feel so devastated, as if we lost some grand battle. Immediately after watching your review, I got myself a Zenfone 9 and I love it and use it every single day. It's an absolute gem: killer specs in a compact one-handed size, just like you mentioned. I got friends and acquaintances asking what kind of phone it is and asking to hold it to this very day. Got a Zenfone 10 for my mom's birthday and she's loving it as well. I hoped that with all the support that I've seen for the Zenfone 9/10 phones that Asus could keep on carrying the torch of being the last true high-end compact phone manufacturer, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. I still have hope that the zenfone 11 is something they experiment with and come back to the compact phone formula, as I'm not sure what phone I'll be getting after the Zenfone 9 dies on me (seems unlikely). Definitely a Zenfone 10 just for the refresh, but how long will that last? We need to know that there is a compact phone manufacturer out there, that has our back.
It’s a phone dude😂
Unfortunately in my book Zenfone 9 is a really hard pass at this point due to Asus' extremely poor software support. The 9 is scheduled to run out of support this year. Even on the 10, the revised four years of security updates is on par with devices that cost half the money. On that note, I also think the Zenphone was just way too expensive. My theory is, that people who want small phones don't really care that much about max specs, and with a smaller pricetag and e.g. a slower processor, it would've sold better.
Yeah, I remember how happy I was with my Xperia tipo! Credit-card-sized pretty baby... Had to change it eventually, because the android version became obsolete, and most apps could no longer work with it, and hardware could barely handle newer OS from a custom build. Modern idea of a 'compact phone' is sick, it's like 'if it's smaller than your laptop, then it's probably compact'. :( Yes, I know, I'm in 'minority niche market', but can we really be ignored that much?
My generation (xennial) grew up with both analog and digital stuff. The thing I loved about tech advancement is the ability to make things smaller, more efficient, portable, and can do more stuff. Taking "small" out of the equation is disappointing. There was nothing cooler than a small phone in ur pocket. Now we have to walk around with bricks. If I want a big screen to watch / play / read books stuff, there is an ipad, a tablet .. even a laptop..
On the other hand, everyone wants to call someone (the least used function in a phone nowadays), watch a movie, read a book, play a game, etc. All-in-one devices need a bigger screen. Well there is always my laptop for that stuff.
But that's just me :)
As a millennial I still carry on a tablet, a phone and my iPod Classic. I tried the all-in-one-device life and honestly I don't get how people can enjoy that. The only reasons I have an iPhone Pro Max are the cameras and the fact tha twith my gigantic thumbs it's more comfortable for writing messages...but it lives 80% of time in a backpack or on my desk...I literally can't use it as much as many people do without my hands hurting and my eyes drying...
I honestly really like the all in one device concept. It's so much easier than dragging a tablet and a laptop with me everywhere.
What is a xennial
Gen Z doesn't know how to use laptops. Seriously. Ask them what a file or a folder or even a program is. They will look at you like you are deranged.
Agreed I don't need a phone to do everything. I prefer using my laptop to watch stuff like movies or online videos or play games. I mainly use my phone for simple tasks like texting and calling or doing internet searches while I'm out and about.
4:37 maybe if the 12/13 mini weren't also competing with the SE series, then it'd sell better as the cheapest iPhone
SEs are a market beast for second hand cheap phoned
the next iphone SE should be the mini size. This will help differentiate between the regular iPhone models while satisfying the community who wants smaller phones. I think the trend towards bigger and bigger tablet-like phones is very bad.
A lot of carriers were offering SE for $200 which put it in a completely different price bracket. The SE2020 sold well despite its size because it was the only way people on a budget could get a new iPhone (which is everything to people in the US). Small phones just don't sell.
This is a similar thing to car manufacturers discontinuing most of the Sadans and pushing SUVs. Why always big with these people?
Oh, that's because the government put strict and ever-increasing economy and emissions regulations on cars and imposed heavy penalties for violating the rules (the CAFE Standards), but not so much for trucks which are often used for commercial purposes. Carmakers don't like risking getting massive fines, so they responded by making nearly every car something that could be classified as a light truck, like crossovers, SUVs, and minivans. Now 80% of all cars sold are "light trucks." It's one of many plans to save the planet that had the opposite affect.
It's because corporations in late stage capitalism don't want to supply us with the products we actually need. Instead they manufacture demand for wasteful overly big products.
They're size queens
@@carstenpfundt😮😅 😳🫣
The car issue is beyond car makers hands, they just work with a legal loophole that let's them make big cars. The small car/truck thing is a 1970s tariff issue and 30 years later a EV push/environmental law gone wrong. You can import a small vehicle but it has to be 25 years or older lol.
I have fkn tiny hands and I just upgraded to a zenfone 9 and this is the absolute biggest phone i can handle without it getting uncomfortable to use, im so disappointed that this is probably going to be my last confortable phone, and one-handed mode just doesnt cut it. From what i read from other small phone users, we tend to use our phones to the bitter end and dont upgrade until we absolutely have to, hell my last phone was a galaxy s8. I really hope someone makes a small flagship in like 4-5 years, and that would be just in time for my next upgrade
R.I.P. small phones 😢
Pixel 7a 🎉
@@MiloWills 6.1 inches ain't small
@@rocketsrequiem It's better than anything else though
@@rocketsrequiem is the old 5.5 screens so small compared to the 6.67 - 6.8
the "small phones" we call today was not called a small phone in 2007. you're going to have to go to 2001
I still remember the days of saving for an S10e cause i loved how it looked and felt in the hand, so compact. Truly end of an era.
I had that phone and it was glorious
I still have that phone. Still works great. SD card, headphone jack, Samsung DEX.. I am highly tempted to buy a spare one.
@@ShutterKnackAnd they managed both wireless and reverse wireless charging on it. Mind blowing. Still rocking one.
@@ShutterKnack just don't, Asus Zenfone 11on horizon see what's in store
My last phone was S10e and my current phone is Zenfone 10. Inlove both.
The weird thing is that they invented foldable displays and didn't use them to reduce phone sizes. Instead these phones have the size of a small tablet when they are opened.
Except they did. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip and the new Motorola Razr are the big-name ones that act like flip phones instead of tablets.
Innovations ✨ 🗿
I love my flip 5. So smol
Have you even seen modern flip phones, such as the ones Samsung makes?
@@cupofjoen The guy is wrong lol
I literally just bought myself a new zenfone 10 a couple of days ago... I was looking for a top level form factor and I had to buy an old model to get that comfort choice... a shame not many people are looking for them
I've always a fan of the sony compact line and now the xperia 5 models are getting too big too (plus I hate the weird screen ratio)
This is what everyone defined a little amazing phone plus with the 16g of ram I can emulate console all day (best purchase ever)
I miss when a 5.5 inch screen was considered large. When I had my Oneplus One, that's as far as I wanted to go and I still stand by that. It's tough trying to find anything now that's both compact and uses a headphone jack
I was about to roast you for wanting a phone that doesn't exist but I'm still waiting for my notch/holepunch-less phone with a headphone jack...
Sony Xperia 5 mark V? 🙂
Just forget about the jack already
👍🏻 The Sony has it
@@Alessandro-K333
Dude. first off the Sony is 6,1 not 5,5. second of all it uses 21:9 aspect ratio.
It might have a headphone jack but it’s missing all the other stuff.
I remember the first cell phones. We cycled from larger to smaller as smaller was better. Then that reversed. We went from PDAs to phones and we went from using a stylus to no stylus and many are going back again. We went from bigger phones to flip phones, and now flip/foldable. What is old is new again.
It's moreso the tech is improving so devs are making the old stuff better. But yes, trends do tend to cycle. But are we going to make old phones like what we had before the 2000s? Probably not.
We may want to reduce our dependence on tech and use an actual older phone but it will never be new phones to have that same stuff. The closet someone will get to a "small" phone will be flip/fold touch screens which are a lot smaller than the larger Pros/Ultras.
Back in the day the first iphone was only 3.5 inch and was considered gargantuan. Yes it was revolutionary as no screen was that big before.
On the other side the use case evolved. The old large phones (early 90's) were used to talk and send SMS. Later phones (end of 90's) were much smaller but still used for the same thing. Today's phones are used to watch videos, browse online content, edit pictures, play games, ... As such they need a bigger screen and battery.
Totally agree. I miss my old phone where I could actually reach the entire screen with one hand.
There's still small smart phones though. I personally don't really see what's special about these "flagship" phones.
True, but small flagships are rare these days. I miss the one-handed use and portability. @@aberba
I love small phones, I never wanted theme dead. Give me back my small phones!
Remembering the days we used to name phablet a phone with 6,5" screen. BTW, to days of work I prefer a small phone (5,8") to use mostly in one hand.
its all in the bezels, it may be small in size but still peak content consumerism with close to visible bezels
5,3 and upwards was called phablet 😂😂😂
One handed operation is a bad party truck guaranteed to shorten the phone's life
maybe your hands are small. I easily fit 6.7" in one hand.
Phones got taller which gives the illusion of "bigger" when you see the screen size specs.
My 5.7" Galaxy Note 3 has the exact same screen width as my 6.9" Galaxy N20U.
I blame the shareholders and customers!
The same reason SUVs are the new norm.
Bigger means bigger margins.
And in the eyes of consumers, bigger = better.
And look at that, 2 things I dislike *sigh, truly sucks being the minority
That's what she said 😂
Big phones = better for video (which is why I get them)
@@DrewHalesi don't get this one. the experience is not better for me in any way
ah the us land of the *redacted*
I just recently discovered my old Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, turned it on and browsed my music for some 20-30 minutes.
After some minutes I was already accustomed to the small screen.
I then put it back and turned on my Pixel 4a, which is considered compact.
I thought the damn thing was far too huge.
If people were forced to use smaller screen phones - they would get used to it very fast.
I still have a Samsung Galaxy A3 (first gen) with a 4.5" screen and sometimes I pick it up and use it for a few hours. After that my (in today's standards) compact Xiaomi Mi 9 SE with its 5.97" screen feels so big 😅.
Keep that treasure, im still diehard Xpress Music, ttpod and lcgbox fans..
Thanks Marques. I was wondering as I tried to buy my uncle a smaller sized screen smartphone why I couldn’t find anything on the Samsung store. You answered all my questions in one video! RIP small phones. You will be missed !
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. You gotta love compact phones, it's just a shame they aren't mainstream enough
Aren't they? The zenfone is quite similar in size to the base samsung s and iphone series
it honestly baffles my why the majority would rather carry around a pocket tablet.
It's a social status thing more than likely
Better Hardware with better battery life. If I could get the same hardware and same level of battery life from a compact phone, I would buy it in a heart beat.
Because I have big hands. Because I can navigate maps better when driving. Because I'm a power user and like to flick through my phone quickly, and doing that on a small screen is difficult when your hands are cramped into a smaller place. Because more content fits on my screen with less scrolling. Because movies and videos are on larger display so myself and others can easier watch whatevers on my phone.
Want more?
better battery life? maybe
better hardware? no
And still, the 1% of the population that prefers and buys small phones account for 99% of the comments in any video that discusses phone size. (% numbers slightly exaggerated to make a point.)
Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15 are now the most compact phones....
6 inch or bigger is already too much.
@olivierthebat my s23 is almost identical to the zenphone tho , cause it has slimmer bezels!
@@olivierthebatno it's not. Don't just look at the plain screen size. A 15 Pro Max is literally the same size as the Zenfone 10. And that is considered compact
yeah...6.1'' with low bezels is perfect to hold anything less or more doesn't feel good
@@olivierthebat S24 and Iphone 15 are basically similar in size wtih Zenfone 9. Check out GSMArena for measurements
This is so depressing. I don't want to spend $700 on a phone but I would buy the Zenfone 10 just to have a skinnier phone IF it wasn't GSM only, but the GSM carriers aren't very good where I live.
Very sad that these are considered "small" phones when in reality they're just normal sized phones (i.e. phones you can operate with one hand)
Zenfone was not that small when compared to S23. So I skipped it.
Yeah, I felt like I was going crazy when I unpackaged my "small" Zenfone 10. My Moto G 1st gen was much smaller and weighed less too!
I can use my 6.7 inch phone with one hand just fine. Phones are multimedia consumption devices nowadays, it doesn't make sense to have a small screen.
@@musguelha14not everyone has giant hands bigfoot
Yea for real. I thought this was going to be about Iphone 5S style phones, like less than 12 cm (5 inches).
I remember that 4.7" were the standard and more than 5 inches was a big phone. I miss those years!
Those phones had gigantic bezels. The iPhone 15 has 6.1" an is literally just barely bigger than a Galaxy S5 with 5.1"
I miss those years but not those phones, they were slow and awful
Then why didn't you buy a mini phone this generation? You are the reason behind your complaints.
No, thank God it got bigger than 5 inches and more advanced. 5.8-6.4 inches are the best sizes with 6.1 being optimum.
@@Raja995mh33 larger bezels = more ergonomic, actually designed for humans, landscape mode is actually usable, no accidental touches
When I worked for Sony, the Compact line of flagships were generally my favourites. I used them as my daily phone for work. But they just didn't really sell, even though the specs were the same as the full-size flagship people just assumed it was inferior because it was smaller
My Xperia Z3 Compact was so good
Xperia pro I was one of my favorite phones! Just replaced it with an s24u and I miss the sony being able to fit in my hand.
I liked Ericsson over Nokia back in the 90s/early 00s, then the smaller series Sony Ericsson (i.e. had the mini pro/mango for a long while). Then the compact series was king on my part (I do think it had a GiB less ram? than the original sized ones). They did some janky thing where if you unlocked the phone the camera would not be high quality any more, for some odd weird Sony Ericsson reason.
But it's probably true that there isn't much of a market for smaller phones any more. 😕
I delayed as much as i could to leave my old phone behind.. I could use it with one hand, but it got so slow it was impossible to continue with it and i had to buy a new one.
These days, 6.5-inch screens are the standard-unbelievable. They're so big and cumbersome. I would stick to the old one forever if I could, but unfortunately, I can't.
As someone who daily drives an iPhone 12 mini its sad to see small smartphones die. I think the reason people want bigger and bigger phones is more and more people don't own a personal computer and do everything on their smartphone so a bigger screen just works better for them unfortunately.
the professionals use laptops for work and leisure, and phones as work companions. the commoners use phones for everything.
I really only use my PC for gaming now. So this is true for me and most people as far as I know. Phones are most people's main computers at the end of the day.
People gettin older and can’t see them little screens as good anymoy
@@khairulhelmihashim2510 only asians do that.
Western people have Desks and PCs at home and a laptop for when they travel.
I remember getting actual shit from friends when I was the first to get the og galaxy note. “What are you doing with that tv in your pocket” 😂😂😂
I also made fun of a coworker for getting that. Now I have a Note 20 Ultra 😂
Yeah. People use to make fun of me too. I've always loved the Note. But I would always tell them, small screen is going to be history one day. I'm talking about iPhone 3 and 4 time.
I make fun of them now because they all use a big phone.
But I think Samsung Galaxy S size phones are going to get popular again within the next 10 years.
Also worth Note-ing (see what I did there) that phone screen sizes have steadily crept up across the board. The Galaxy S24, for example, has a bigger screen than the original Note. In fact, back in those days it may have been considered a phablet.
Same thing with my note 2, note 4, and now my fold 5! 🙄😒🫥
Brooooooo. The OG note was a fat phone for its time lmao. i think we can still call it fat today. i loved it. my mum thought i was going over the top when i got it. called it unnecessary and showing off 😭
I think the tag "mini" is what compels users to refrain from them and opt for the max and the pro's. Remove the tag mini and sell it as IPhone 12/13 (mini but without the tag) with the other line ups being Pro and Pro max.
You might be onto something. If they just referred to it by screen size and made a point of mentioning how it was the same spec, people would probably still be down. The older small iPhones were always reduced spec, and I bet you people thought that the minis were an SE type deal. Apple couldn't of botched them any worse. In Canada they released the 12 mini several weeks later than the regular iPhone so it's no surprise most people who really wanted to upgrade already did. Then I talked to so many people who mentioned wanting a smaller phone and I showed him mine and they were surprised because they didn't even know it existed.
For me it's the simple fact that a "mini" phone is way larger than the phone in my pocket, a pixel 4. They are not in fact mini, just less big.
Compact also died.
Then how can they charge $1000???
Or use something cool sounding like "stealth"
The thing is the 12 mini would have been such a great phone with huge sales I know so many who would have gotten one but the biggest problem ist that it was a 12mini not a 12 mini pro with the better features and the better cam
My people. I was waiting until the release of iPhone 15 to get a 13 Mini at a reduced price, but they just flat out stopped selling them. So I caved and got a regular 15. I'm a guy with probably average or slightly smaller than average hands, and it is a little hard to use with one hand without minor shifting. Wish I could've gotten a 15 Mini :(
Same here. Didn’t get the mini when it came out and now I regret it
can't you find a used one on ebay or something like that?
Why don't get used 13 mini then
That's another problem with small phones. A lot of people who buy them are also people who are more practically inclined. They don't chase clout with the biggest and most expensive, they are more likely to seek deals and keep phones working for a long time. Which, in turn, kills new small phones.
I love my 13 mini. But when I went to get it the cell shop rep was reeeeally pushing me to get the bigger/regular sized one. Probably cause they make commission and the bigger ones cost more.
I have a hunch this is why the mini did not do as well as thought even though it was well received.
Same, when my 13 mini got stolen I went to get a Xiaomi Note 11 (cheapest I could find lol, also has a massive screen), the sales person was all about how she would buy the Pro Max with the biggest screen if she possibly could. I literally facepalmed lol, but I she looked like the kind of person whose phone is her only screen.
Cell phone reps make the bulk of their commission from the plans and service they sell you. Not the phone. Cell phone carriers make $0 when they sell you a phone, it’s all recouped through the service
I work in a computer/cell phone repair shop, and we see elderly people come in all the time with a brand new 15 pro max because the sales rep pushed it so damn hard for his commission. One person just had the usual charging issue where lint and dirt get packed into the lightning port, and the sales rep told this older lady that the charging port was fried and she needed a...... you guessed it, 512GB iPhone 15 Pro Max. (we cleaned the port for free and sent her back to that sales rep to get refunded, I'm sure he got an earful too)
Honestly, as a female with small-ish hands, I desperately NEED a good small phone that is globally available. The number of times my phone has tumbled out of my hands trying to reach the corner with one hand is insane. 😭
I don't know how big your "small" hands are because I have big hands and I CANNOT reach the other side; I HAVE to use two hands
I can barely reach 2/3 across with a normal grip
Just buy a galaxy s24, because there will be nothing smaller and lighter. And 7 years of android updates will help:)
Same. I adore my 13 mini. Giving serious thought to swapping to the Samsung Flip. Might wait to see what Apple do. I need a phone that fits in teeny women’s pockets and I can use one handed.
@@karolislatakas137 Yeah next time I update my phone, I'll definitely go for the latest base model they have (if they maintain the size 🤞🏼). I had an iPhone X which was wonderful for my hands, then went to get an S21 FE (best I could afford at the time. The Google pixel 6A was a competitor but I was in India at the time and their service in India wasn't the best) and this thing is definitely not comfortable 😭
@@user-kr5vm8nk1d IKR! I too am considering the flip phones because they're so darn cute Hehe but I feel like they might be too tall as well when opened. I'll have to go to a store and do a hands on test.
When there was a rumor about an S24 mini I absolutely got 100% ready to get that phone
Had all I would want on a phone and then some, presumably.
Then...as life'd have it it was all just a rumor
the things i would do to go back to the iPhone 5S
Hence why my next phone will be an iphone se.
isheep 😂@@myhandlewastakenandIgaveup
@@myhandlewastakenandIgaveupnooo get a 13 mini instead
still is quite good as secondary phone for music playing,calls,text,etc
My best friend didn’t budge from his 5S until the 12 came out
RIP SMALLPHONES
2007-2023
You can go back about an extra decade. The pre-touchscreen phones market was focused on making them smaller and smaller.
@@bazem i keep the phones of my late father used as memories, and one of them is the size of my pinky. it's a panasonic gd55 and still works!
@@leastE I collect all my old phones too, my Samsung SGH-x830 was one of the smallest I ever seen, and I nicknamed it Halls drops.
Wdym
Small is relative at this point. Zenfone 10 is the largest phone I've owned.
Oh I feel so sorry for it. Phones sized like the iPhone mini series are just perfect for me. Really sad there was no demand for those types of phones and they get to be discontinued
People wants big screen as much as they can fit in their pockets... I always loved small phones but now a days there's no option available
That's why I'm still using Sony Xperia. It's still large, but it's tall instead of wide. Can use it with one hand still, and fits in the pockets very well.
If only Xperia 5 lineup doesn't have so much lightsaber issues, it'll be a good investment for long term. The fact it has better camera than the Zenfone when shooting manually (auto mode is on the horizon of being bad), a dedicated shutter button which I love, micro-sd support and big battery in that small compact size with the 21:9 ratio. Luckily both have the headphone jack.
However the 2 years software support and the initial selling price kind of doing its demise.
(That's also the reason why I had to go for the Xperia 1 lineup after my replacement Xperia 5ii unit launch a star wars battle whenever I turn on the screen, which the exact same problem with the initial unit)
I've broken my Xperia 5 III twice in my years of owning it and still haven't had led issues
@@5nak_music that's good news and rejoice Xperia users!
But here in the Asia region 5ii are famous for their OLED issues, there are some 5iii which get it but significantly decreased compared to 5ii
@@hhh5377 Sony aren't serious about selling smartphones. Why is their cheapest smartphone $500? I love their Quad DACs but I even second hand Xperias are expensive.
@@hhh5377What are "lightsaber issues"? I've never heard that phrase in reference to a smartphone before...
Me rocking a 5.7 inch Pixel 4, though at times I’d love a bigger screen real estate, but man oh man nothing can beat the comfort of a small form factor phone
Mine just passed:/ getting a second hand Zenfone 8 hopefully
I just grabbed an open box, top line Zenfone 10 based largely off your review, it was hard to find one, but seeing this now makes it worth it rather than waiting for the next generation of the Zenfone.
Excellent move. You won't be sorry. Personally I'm going to battery service my Zenfone 10 until the next small thing comes along.
@@carlito99taiwan I'm babying my Zenfone 10 by using a "slow" charger from my Sony XZ1 Compact so that battery will last longer, it's a sad day for us that like pocketable phones.
I bought Zenfone 8 due to compact size, but it's bricking now, motherboards are damaging on their own for many people and Asus is not taking the responsibility for it, ..Many people are facing this issue, wifi hotspot not working, Many of them just bricking randomly!
Just looked it up, 800eur....pass! I cannot justify price like that.
Why e just dont get more options in 300-400eur price? Going to 6.7" Xiaomi 13T, mainly because good cameras and 400eur price range
As a cyclist I like to carry my mobile in my jersey rear pocket…the trouble is phones have got bigger and bigger, to the point where my cycling jerseys can’t cope. I’d really like something small and light, but such phones are a rare breed now. 😢
I think its just the S/M/L effect. Having the mini be marketed as a mini and just being $100 less makes most folks think that it has worse value than the regular iPhone. Makes it even worse when you consider most folks are looking at the 24 month installment and $100 only adds about $4 a month.
and here I thought people wished they fit in S labeled clothes!