[cehrlich]

I wonder if there isn't a third factor:

3. Android OEMs can't make a good small phone, even if there was the demand to produce it at scale

Because of how efficient Apple's SoCs are compared to Snapdragons, Android phones typically have much larger batteries than iPhones while getting about the same battery life. Big battery requires a big phone. The occasional somewhat small Android phone (for example Galaxy S10e) tends to have awful battery life.

[nicpottier]

Pixel 5 has great battery life. Note that none of the requirements are that it is some game machine or anything. Even less than top-tier chipsets are just fine for me. I just want a good camera in a pocketable form factor.

[Closi]

I think OP means that Android Phones with comparable battery life to an iOS device tend to have a larger battery to support that (when compared to the iPhone), which is more difficult with smaller enclosures (i.e. in a large phone it's easier to hide a large battery, and they don't scale entirely proportionally to screen size).

i.e. the Pixel 5 will last about 10% longer than an iPhone 12 on a single charge, but it achieves this with a battery that is about 45% bigger (2,800 mAh vs 4,080mAh). Both have the same size screen (in fact, the iPhone is slightly larger).

[skavi]

The Pixel 5 is closer in size to an iPhone 13 than a 13 Mini. IIRC it’s nearly the exact same size as an iPhone 11 Pro.

[nmstoker]

The camera is often the reason i end up with a phone that's way bigger than I'd otherwise like. The Pixel 6XL has the better camera but otherwise I'd have been all over the 6 (or smaller if it had they done anything in that space). My Pixel 4 still feels way better sized when i go back to it periodically.

[vbezhenar]

You can make thick phone. Thick phones are much more pleasant to hold.

[Ajedi32]

That's another thing I want from a phone that no OEM seems to want to make. Make the phone thicker, get rid of the camera bump, and fill the extra space with a bigger battery!

[msh]

The ulephone power armor series sounds just like the phone for you.

[aidenn0]

My Unihertz Jelly2 is much smaller than TFA is asking for (and has a shitty camera plus midrange CPU making it disqualified), but battery life is Just Fine. Making the phone significantly larger should easily allow for a large enough battery for a flagship processor.

[mayama]

There are small phones with decent battery performance in Android too. Zenfone 8 from last year is an example. But new small phones is a dying breed going forward with big players not interested in making them at all anymore. Only less known brands dab in making them or some budget phones.

[mcv]

There used to be plenty of small Android phones. They could make them again. Battery life or processor power might be a bit less, but they used to work fine. There's no good reason why they can't again.

[balaji1]

Not intending to start a storm here.

Why does the author want an Android? The iPhone mini would do the job right? I have a iPhone mini for the same reasons of size, premium feel and price.

It would be cool to hear what the founder of Pebble has to say about "why Android". Has he said it anywhere else?

[striking]

Article:

> # Why don’t you just use an iPhone Mini?

> I actually do now! I switched from Android back to iPhone in late 2021 because the Pixel 6 was too ridiculously large. This was my first iPhone since the OG iPhone.

> But only 5% of all iPhones sold are Minis (roughly 10m phones per year). This means that Apple may decide to kill the Mini. For Apple, 10m phones is peanuts. But for an independent company 10m units per year would be spectacular.

> If Apple kills the Mini, those people will need a new home. An Android phone (with Beeper for iMessage) might be an adequate alternative.

[... snip ...]

[bottlelion]

I'll speak for myself, but I don't think that the iPhone Mini users that chose the iPhone Mini for it's form factor will switch to Android. Personally, I'm all-in on the Apple ecosystem. I prefer the Mini, but I would chose an iPhone 13 Pro over any Android (large or small).

[cowtools]

From the website:

>[...] personally, after 6 months of iOS I am itching to get back to Android. Why? The notification system SUCKS on iOS compared to Android. It’s impossible to move files between apps. Hard to get any work done on it. Beautiful hardware though!

[balaji1]

oh yes I remember reading this now.

Co-incidentally I was just glad today morning that iPhone doesn't show the row of small notification icons on the top-bar all the time. And then noticed that notifications don't show on the home screen also. I pulled down the notification list and saw a ton of notifications - I said no thanks and left them all unopened.

I did switch from Android to iPhone recently. I think notifications on iPhone are way better, I get distracted way lesser. Tho I don't get many important or time-sensitive notifications. Just a bunch of transactional notifications.

[boznz]

Remove all the crapware and you are generally back to a good battery life

[metadat]

S10e battery life was generally fine for me, always lasting at least one day of typical usage, even when I was on the go all day.