You're viewing a single thread.
Who tf used an IR blaster? And what sane person misses the flimsy plastic back on phones with removable batteries? They didn't cut a hole in your screen, they removed a half inch of dead useless space at the top and bottom and gave you more usable real estate while also cranking the resolution and refresh rate to 11. Buttons? WHAT BUTTONS EXACTLY? The single enormous one that ate up nearly 25% of the phone and all it did was GO BACK?! And don't even mention the cameras. Your five cameras you didn't ask for are why you can film yourself in 4K doing whatever brain dead tiktok fad you saw on your enormous HD screen, and why you can pretend you had front row seats to a concert you sat in the nosebleeds for.
Headphone jack is fair, no argument. I use Bluetooth headphones but I get the rationale. Everything else is stupid.
Your argument against removable batteries is that they had a "flimsy plastic back"? seriously prefer being unable to change the battery when its capacity decreases, being unable to carry a spare battery around, and having to pay dumb service fees, all just to not have a back that you barely even notice is made of plastic?
Also removable storage is extremely useful as well, not only for being able to cheaply increase space when needed, but also to minimize the effort of swapping devices or sharing large files more quickly.
Modular is always better. The only good argument against it is shareholder profits.
It doesn't even need to be plastic. The battery could slot into the side of the phone on a tray with a gasket to try and seal it.
Personally I don't think the battery needs to be as easily replaced if it lasts longer. Lithium ion cells degrade too quickly but a lithium iron phosphate cold last for 10 years before dropping below 85% charge capacity.
The only drawback is they have about 30% less energy density but imo making the battery 30% larger is not a big deal. Phones have obsessed with being pointlessly thin for so long. Basically just remove the dumb camera bump.
I do miss removable batteries, they had the added benefit of having a heavy mass (the battery) get thrown out when the phone falls. That helped save the display from getting damaged because a lot of the momentum was transferred to the battery popping out
For real? I use the IR blaster every day when the wife/kids have misplaced the TV remote or CBF getting up to grab it
I've been trying to acclimate my Dad to digital stuff-- get him reading the news online for when the local rag finally goes weekly or closes.
He would have an easier time with a device with 5% less screen, but always-present physical home/back/menu buttons.
I'm not sure what the ideal device would be for him; I've set him up with a Kindle Fire with the Play store and a handful of prevetted apps because I had it handy and it seemed more approachable than a 6" phone or a laptop with keyboard and trackpoint. But I'm all but sure the right device is NOT a new phone.