It’s time to rethink smartphone design

There’s quite a bit to love in regards to the present state of smartphones – their reliability, their prolonged and in depth software program help, the sheer high quality of the elements concerned – however I would argue that the business’s design language is on the prime of the pack. In 2024, most flagships appear and feel nice, utilizing high-quality supplies like aluminum, glass, titanium and chrome steel to create one thing that may stand as much as scrutiny over that four-figure price ticket.

And but, regardless of on a regular basis, cash and ability spent constructing premium smartphones that really feel as spectacular as a chunk of jewellery, the typical person slaps a heavy case on their telephone the second it leaves the field. It is comprehensible – once more, we’re speaking about four-figure costs normally, and nobody needs to drop more money on a restore job after an unintentional fall. But when utilizing these high-end supplies in the end means hiding the work that designers at Samsung and Google spent years creating, is not it time to rethink your complete business?

Each telephone is gorgeous – and fairly breakable

Your Pixel seems nice till it is hidden by a case

a few of my favourite smartphones of the yr, it is easy to see the issue at hand. Google’s Pixel 9 Professional is among the best-looking gadgets I’ve ever held, and but, almost 4 months after its launch, I can barely use it with no case. Its metallic body seems gorgeous out of the field, however in observe it’s actually slippery, particularly if you happen to’re doing one thing that makes your arms sweat. This large digicam bump stands out in a crowd, however is virtually destined for doom – beauty or in any other case – if it lands on a concrete flooring.

As a lot as I would love my assortment of Pixel 9 Professional circumstances, I should not really feel like this $1,000 telephone’s survival — to not point out its very usability — depends upon a group of plastic and rubber equipment. It is an issue that impacts the remainder of Google’s prime line this yr, too. Even the Pixel 9’s matte end is undone by the shiny glass on the again of the telephone.

It isn’t simply Google, in fact. Whereas the Galaxy S24 Extremely fares higher within the grip division, even Samsung needed to make concessions to guard that titanium body from harm. As an alternative of matching the bezel to no matter shade you probably did within the field, each S24 Extremely wraps the identical titanium grey band across the telephone. I perceive why — Apple struggled with scratches on telephones just like the blue iPhone 15 Professional Max I reviewed a yr in the past — however all which means for finish customers is a worse design.

The checklist would not finish with Samsung and Google flagships, in fact. From the slippery curved edges of the OnePlus 12 to the fragility of any foldable machine ever made, smartphones are actually breakable today, particularly if you happen to’re attempting to go caseless. As refreshing as chrome steel finishes and trendy Gorilla Glass have been during the last decade, I am beginning to look much more nostalgic for the times of well-made plastic {hardware}. Not less than I might consider how they might age over time.

It is time to carry plastic again to smartphones

Or, no less than, extra clever telephone design

In my thoughts, solely two smartphones of 2024 actually gave the very best illustration of what I believe cellular design can and must be: the Pixel 8a and the common iPhone 16. And since that is an Android centric website, let’s begin with the Android telephone.

The love the flagship design of the Pixel 8. After all, some sacrifices are clearly made for the sake of reaching the goal worth of $500. I do not actually care about her frames, though I do know some folks do (certainly, if it weren’t for the underside of her chin, I would not even take into consideration her frames). Matte plastic again can SEEMS like a minimize nook, however in observe, it feels good within the hand. It is sustainable, positive, however it’s additionally FUNwith shiny shade choices to match an general pleasant design. This factor, with its rounded corners and comparatively gentle weight, feels unbelievable within the hand. I would not dream of hitting a case on it.

Then there’s the iPhone 16. Put iOS 18 apart for a second — as terrible as it’s — and simply have a look at the core design. Whereas I believe Apple’s choice to make use of a vertical adjustment for its lens was the improper name, the remainder of the telephone is precisely what I am searching for in my smartphones. It is as gentle as you will discover within the 2024 – solely the Galaxy S24 beats it by a couple of grams – and the all-matte end means it is not slippery in any respect. After all, it is nonetheless utilizing glass on the again, which I would fairly keep away from for concern of breaking. However no less than there may be the colours. Each the brown and ultramarine shades are a few of my favourite smartphone seems through the years.

Once more, none of those fashions are good, even extending past frames and digicam shake, respectively. However of the handfuls of telephones I’ve used as my day by day driver this yr, these have been the 2 that felt closest to a no-compromise expertise.

I am not saying that telephone containers will not exist or should not exist. In each circumstances, I’ve kept away from utilizing a case outdoors of particular conditions: touring, heading to the gymnasium, and so forth. However for the overwhelming majority of individuals — particularly white-collar employees who do not wish to carry their smartphone into an area the place any gadget might simply break — I believe the neatest design tendencies could make equipment extra non-compulsory, situational defenders. rarer than the accepted norm.

One of these change would offer advantages past comfort and portability. The following time you purchase a smartphone, you would not be including additional equipment to your cart alongside it, saving you chunk of change relying in your case finances. It might additionally cease you from ditching outdated smartphone circumstances chances are you’ll now not personal, decreasing waste within the course of. Actually, the one individuals who aren’t slated to learn from this sort of design change are the cartridge producers—and, in fact, the OEMs themselves, who virtually universally promote high-priced first-party shells. together with their respective smartphones.

If smartphones are gadgets, let’s rethink their design

And actually, that is why I do not anticipate to see this sort of design pattern change anytime quickly. The smartphone accent business is just too huge to vanish at this level, with these circumstances virtually obligatory additions to the field workplace. Nonetheless, the Pixel 8a and iPhone 16 give me hope for a future that feels much more whimsical, enjoyable, and comfy to make use of than the overwhelming majority of massive, heavy, metallic bricks now we have as we speak. Extra like an iPod, much less like a high-end watch.

I do not anticipate the Galaxy S25 or Pixel 10 to make the swap to plastic, however I would prefer to see extra corporations consider their gadgets as a utility, not a chunk of jewellery. If we’re supposed to make use of these smartphones for greater than 5 years now, they have to be designed to outlive, to not look good in advertisements earlier than we put them in an enormous rubber bumper. As a result of, frankly, if one thing has to depend on a case to final its meant lifespan, I am undecided it is well-designed in any respect.