Thoughts about phone sizes

squire777

New member
Feb 21, 2012
1,345
0
0
Visit site
Lately I have been noticing a lot of people on the net comparing phones of different shapes and sizes and referring to "bigger" phones as bricks, chunky or other synonyms for large. Yes the iPhone is considerably thinner and lighter than most Android and WP8 phones, but to me arguing about millimeters and grams is a bit petty. If you walk into a phone store and lift different devices without looking at the side profiles you won't be able to tell the differences in a few millimeters. Your hands are not micrometers.

So I decided to do some comparisons just to visualize everything, and if you have time you could do it yourself.

First, I decided to draw some rectangles on a blank piece of paper that are the same size as the side profiles of the three main WP8 phones. So the rectangles in mm would be:

8X- 132.3 X 10.1mm
Ativ S - 137.2 X 8.7 mm
Lumia 920 - 130.3 X 10.7mm

After cutting them out and laying them on a table you can see the different sizes. In numbers 8.7 vs 10.7 sounds like a big deal (a whopping 2mm!) but in reality you can see that the difference is negligible.


Secondly, I decided to take three plastic sandwich bags and fill each of them up with the same amount of salt as each phone weighs. An accurate kitchen scale helps here.

8X - 130g
ATIV S - 135g
Lumia 920 - 185g

When you lift each bag up they all have a similar weight. Of course there is a tiny difference in 130g vs 185g but after mixing the bags around you will barely be able to tell which is which.

You can also tie up each bag and carry it around in your pants pocket for a while to see how much of a "brick" 185g is vs 130g and you will most likely find that once in your pocket you cannot tell the difference in weight.

I'm not trying to advocate that one phone is better than another but on the other hand I'm trying to point out that arguing about negligible differences is quite pointless. People on the net are just using pointless arguments to fuel their own personal bias.

If you like your phones thin and light then by all means buy a thin and light phone. Just don't go saying calling a phone a "brick" just for being 2mm bigger.
 

1jaxstate1

New member
Dec 6, 2010
3,249
9
0
Visit site
I don't know how much bigger my Nokia Lumia is compared to my ex Galaxy S2 or Focus, but it's noticeably heavier. It's like WOW, when you first grab it. But after about a week, I like the added heft. In the end, I stated to think, my lumia isn't too heavy, those other phones are too light.

It all depends on how long you use the phone. But I think the heft of the lumia would be my limit.
 

socialcarpet

Banned
Apr 4, 2012
1,893
0
0
Visit site
I don't know how much bigger my Nokia Lumia is compared to my ex Galaxy S2 or Focus, but it's noticeably heavier. It's like WOW, when you first grab it. But after about a week, I like the added heft. In the end, I stated to think, my lumia isn't too heavy, those other phones are too light.

It all depends on how long you use the phone. But I think the heft of the lumia would be my limit.

That's where I'm at too. The size/weight of my L900 is really my limit, actually a bit beyond it. Whatever I get next is going to be a little smaller and hopefully lighter. I'm not willing to sacrifice too much quality for weight saving though.

The 920 would have been ideal for me if they had a matte finish and attained the higher resolution without going to a larger screen.

I don't think I want an iPhone and there are alot of things I don't like about them, but one thing Apple did get right is understanding that a lot of people want to be able to comfortably use a phone one-handed and not have it feel huge in their pocket. Not everyone wants a 4.7", 5" 5.5" ridiculous Android tablet style smartphone.
 

Simon Tupper

New member
Aug 27, 2012
784
0
0
Visit site
I don't like the Lumia because it is thick and heavy. (Deal breaker)
That being said
I like the Lumia for it's cool features and exclusive apps. (Still interesting)
I count on the in-store impression.
 

anon(5335877)

New member
Jan 27, 2012
1,457
0
0
Visit site
I don't know how much bigger my Nokia Lumia is compared to my ex Galaxy S2 or Focus, but it's noticeably heavier. It's like WOW, when you first grab it. But after about a week, I like the added heft. In the end, I stated to think, my lumia isn't too heavy, those other phones are too light.

It all depends on how long you use the phone. But I think the heft of the lumia would be my limit.

I like the weight too, makes it feel substantial. Not made out of cheap materials that'll fall into a million pieces if it drops.
 

1jaxstate1

New member
Dec 6, 2010
3,249
9
0
Visit site
Apple done the right thing with the 4" move. I prefer the 4.3" screens, but I like a well built frame that can offset the larger screen. A huge screen with a huge frame is a no go for me.
That's where I'm at too. The size/weight of my L900 is really my limit, actually a bit beyond it. Whatever I get next is going to be a little smaller and hopefully lighter. I'm not willing to sacrifice too much quality for weight saving though.

The 920 would have been ideal for me if they had a matte finish and attained the higher resolution without going to a larger screen.

I don't think I want an iPhone and there are alot of things I don't like about them, but one thing Apple did get right is understanding that a lot of people want to be able to comfortably use a phone one-handed and not have it feel huge in their pocket. Not everyone wants a 4.7", 5" 5.5" ridiculous Android tablet style smartphone.
 

1jaxstate1

New member
Dec 6, 2010
3,249
9
0
Visit site
After about a week with my Nokia, I really dont like the feel of the Focus anymore. It feels solid, but not heavy. Not sure I'd want anything more heavier than that though. I also like the great battery they were able to put in it. I get 12 - 15 hours easy. With my Focus and GS2, I had to get a spare battery. So it's a matter of give and take.
I like the weight too, makes it feel substantial. Not made out of cheap materials that'll fall into a million pieces if it drops.
 

power5

New member
Oct 10, 2011
1,225
1
0
Visit site
I am sorry but if you can not tell the difference between 185grams and 112grams you may have nerve ending problems. Even 130grams. The DVP weighed 190grams with a slide out keyboard. Seriously, Nokia is heavy. S3 has a 2100mAh batter and weighs 135grams I think. And its only 8.6mm. If it was so unimportant why are ALL phones (except nokia who is going the other direction) getting thinner and lighter? In my hand I like the little extra weight, in my pocket where my phone stays for more than 75% of its day, you can tell its there. Also a bag of salt in your pocket is not the same as a rectangle. Lots more point pressure in the bottom of the pocket with a phone vs a bag.
 

Mio_Ray

New member
Nov 22, 2011
317
0
0
Visit site
I have a Dummy of a LG Optimus 3D, it is pretty similar to weight and size of the 920 and I tried to walk around with it for a while (yea, I know...Dummy phone in the pocket..pretty pathetic..) and surely it took up a bit more space in the pocket than my 800 but the weight difference was actually hardly noticeable. Actually forgot it was not my real phone and tried to unlock the screen on the danm thing after a while ;)

So, yes. Numbers can be be quite harsh, but I read today on Nokia Conversations about their great Communicator 9000 from years back... It was very popular, and more than twice as heavy as the 920!

Anyway, the 8X has made me a bit hesitant about the 920. At least the HTC is clear second on my list. I still want that Pureview camera and the wireless charging. Not to forget about all the Nokia apps.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

anon(5335877)

New member
Jan 27, 2012
1,457
0
0
Visit site
I am sorry but if you can not tell the difference between 185grams and 112grams you may have nerve ending problems. Even 130grams. The DVP weighed 190grams with a slide out keyboard. Seriously, Nokia is heavy. S3 has a 2100mAh batter and weighs 135grams I think. And its only 8.6mm. If it was so unimportant why are ALL phones (except nokia who is going the other direction) getting thinner and lighter? In my hand I like the little extra weight, in my pocket where my phone stays for more than 75% of its day, you can tell its there. Also a bag of salt in your pocket is not the same as a rectangle. Lots more point pressure in the bottom of the pocket with a phone vs a bag.

Holding two phones in different hands, I can detect a slight difference between a Samsung Galaxy Exhibit (116g) and a DVP (191g). It's when I hold them individually (same hand one after the other), pick up the device, or shake the device around that I notice more of a difference.

I feel like 191g vs 116g is a significant difference, but not because of how heavy it feels in my hand, but how heavy it feels when I'm picking it up, putting it down, putting it in or taking it out of my pocket.

Meanwhile, 160g (Lumia 900 and HTC Titan) vs the 116g Galaxy Exhibit I feel like isn't a big enough difference to complain about. It probably would make a difference in maybe a shirt pocket, but definitely not a pants pocket.

I was sort of worried about the Lumia 920's 185g weight, but people who picked it up said it doesn't feel significantly heavier than the Lumia 900 and that it feels well balanced.

In fact, I had a friend pick up my Lumia 900 and compare it to his iPhone 4 (with a very thin non-Apple bumper) and he actually thought his iPhone was heavier when the Lumia is heavier by 23 grams. Shows how the distribution of the weight can affect how heavy a device feels.
 

theefman

Active member
Nov 14, 2008
3,979
5
38
Visit site
I actually have my DVP with me at work and its hard to tell that it's supposedly 'huge and heavy" compared to my Lumia 900 unless you swap phones in the same hand, as mentioned. Its nowhere near the level of me tilting to one side, as some would want to infer but it seems the trend recently has been to find anything possible to beat Nokia's devices with.

I can only say, if 185g is too much for you, maybe time to hit the gym? ;)
 

blehblehbleh

New member
Dec 14, 2011
571
1
0
Visit site
Hmm for weight it depends on where the center of all the mass is right? I mean if the majority is placed dead center, psychologically, wouldn't it feel "heavier"?
 

wormy6

New member
Sep 12, 2012
45
0
0
Visit site
I am waiting to feel each phone in the store but I am worried that Lumia 920 will be annoyingly large and heavy for me. I love WP8, the good battery life, and the camera stabilization but I could care less about NFC, wireless charging, and the larger screen. It might not be worth it to me to be stuck with the extra size/weight.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
322,910
Messages
2,242,883
Members
428,004
Latest member
hetb