“Learn to love the notch.”

March 29, 2018 5:16 PM

Bad iPhone notches are happening to good Android phones [The Verge] “It would be stating the obvious to say that this trend is not a good one. I’m absolutely of the belief that everyone, Apple included, copies or borrows ideas from everyone else in the mobile industry. This is a great way to see technical improvements disseminated across the market. But the problem with these notched screens on Android phones is that they’re purely cosmetic. [...] As every phone manufacturer pursues a minimalist design philosophy, a problem emerges of how to add charm, humanity, and character to devices that are becoming essentially just a big screen. Apple took the risky step of introducing its signature notch, and the positive response from iPhone X owners together with the industry reaction at MWC this week have vindicated that choice.”

• The OnePlus 6 will have a notch, and here’s why [The Verge]

“OnePlus isn’t promoting its move to a notched design as an aesthetic choice. The company insists that it has done its utmost to maximize screen real estate for the user. Where the notch frees up a sliver of space at the top — by absorbing notification and status icons — at the bottom of the phone, OnePlus’ gesture interactions help to remove the persistent Android software keys and thus liberate even more space. Those gestures, available in beta software for existing OnePlus devices, are very much like the iPhone X’s, with a swipe up from the bottom of the screen taking the user home. I like them, my colleague Dan Seifert loves them, but again they seem like a change at least inspired by the iPhone’s.”

• Why Android Is Copying the iPhone X’s Most Hated Feature [Slate]

“The reason Google would implement the notch isn’t so much because it’s a popular design element—since it’s not—but rather because of what it enables. Behind that black notch is an infrared sensor and emitter that Apple uses to scan your face. Paired with the phone’s front-facing camera, it can capture infrared images, 2-D images, and 3-D images, thanks to the sensor’s ability to capture the depth and angle of each point of infrared light—30,000 of them, in this case—that hits your face. With this technology Apple gets an exceedingly accurate picture of your unique facial dimensions, which it can use for biometric authentication, for augmented reality, and for fun, silly applications like Animoji. Already, some Android handsets have opted for notched designs.”

• I finally understand what the iPhone X 'notch' is for [Mashable]

“Don't get me wrong, I still don't like the notch. I'd still prefer the iPhone X without it — the idea of a phone that's essentially just a screen is so wonderfully futuristic that I'd be the first in line to buy one (I'll actually be the first in line to buy the iPhone X anyway, but that's because it's kinda my job). But in a sea of Android smartphones with very slim bezels, the iPhone X will be immediately recognizable when you pull it out of your pocket. You'll get the "oohs" and "aahs" and "is that the new one" comments. You'll get the jealous looks. Perhaps this is not why you, personally, are interested in the iPhone, but the reality is that a lot of people will be buying a $999+ phone for the exclusivity. And the notch, as odd as it may be, separates the iPhone from every other phone out there. This is why the screens on Samsung's flagship phones curve over the edges — a design choice that doesn't actually serve any functional purpose (Samsung will say otherwise, but really, it doesn't).”

• After Just 6 Months, the Phone Notch Is Already Deeply Uncool [Gizmodo]

“So the whole world has gone notch crazy. Sweet. Now there’s a couple reactions you can have. One is to get angry about it, which is fine, but instead, why not try to look one level deeper and figure out what’s causing this change? With the recent trend of smartphones opting for full-view or extra-wide or whatever you want to call it displays and cutting down on bezels, the notch was really an inevitable evolution. You can’t really get rid of a phone’s front-facing cam without whipping up the hoard of selfie-snapping fanatics into a frothy social media-powered complaint storm. But you can try to recover the space on either side of a phone’s front sensors, which is precisely the line of thought that gave us notches in the first place.”

posted by Fizz (61 comments total)

I thought Apple was crazy for giving up the Home button. The button made the phone instantly recognizable as an iPhone. But it looks like the notch wasn't so crazy after all, from an image perspective.
posted by SPrintF at 5:27 PM on March 29, 2018 [3 favorites]

At my local Target, all of the iPhone X cases are on sale. So I guess sales aren't good.

And Samsung's commercial with notch haircut guy is brutal.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 5:31 PM on March 29, 2018 [6 favorites]

At the local Target, all of the iPhone X cases were on sale. So I guess sales aren't good.

And yet they still influenced the market in a very significant way. The OnePlus 6 is a top tier flagship phone, they decided to go all in on notch, so others manufacturers will look at this and run with it as well. For better or worse, I think it may be here to stay.
posted by Fizz at 5:33 PM on March 29, 2018

the iPhone X will be immediately recognizable when you pull it out of your pocket. You'll get the "oohs" and "aahs" and "is that the new one" comments. You'll get the jealous looks.

Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks? Is that a real thing among anyone not actually in the phone industry? I mean, if you can afford a fancy phone rather than the cheapest that will do the job, and if you like phones, good for you, have a phone! But I cannot think of a time since I saw my first smart phone when I've actually looked at someone's phone unless invited particularly to do so.
posted by Frowner at 5:41 PM on March 29, 2018 [41 favorites]

Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks?

I'm sure some subset of overly-status-conscious people do...the Notch is for the niche.
posted by Greg_Ace at 5:55 PM on March 29, 2018 [7 favorites]

the iPhone X will be immediately recognizable when you pull it out of your pocket. You'll get the "oohs" and "aahs" and "is that the new one" comments. You'll get the jealous looks.

I can't imagine a situation where this happens with any one I know. Who even notices phones these days?
posted by octothorpe at 5:57 PM on March 29, 2018 [7 favorites]

I could not possibly care less about 'phone cred' or status or whatever, (3 cheers for getting old) and I would never pay that much for a phone, but I suppose it would be useful insofar as letting me know a small subset of people I might want to avoid. Namely, people who would "ooh" and "aah" over what phone I have.
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 6:04 PM on March 29, 2018 [4 favorites]

The notch is a dumb design choice. Digital images are almost universally presented as some kind of rectangle. Notched screens are not rectangles, ergo they cannot correctly display full-screen images. Also, it's just a make-do until we can get front-facing cameras that will work through a screen. Phone companies are working on that, and as soon as they've got it we'll have phones that are all-screen-all-the-time.

In eighteen months, nobody will care about this.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 6:12 PM on March 29, 2018 [7 favorites]

Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks?

I just know that when I see "Notch" I think very rich assholes.
posted by straight at 6:12 PM on March 29, 2018 [23 favorites]

Some people in my office have been doing the Apple vs. Android arguments. I just want a $200, no-contract phone I can hack.
posted by GenderNullPointerException at 6:12 PM on March 29, 2018 [9 favorites]

Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks?

A friend has an Essential phone (with its itty-bitty notch) and it catches my eye every time he takes it out. It's a cool-looking phone. My phone is a well-loved $200 non-contract phone and has literally no personality at all. I could afford a fancier one but the more expensive my phone is the faster I end up destroying it, so.

Notches are fine. I actually sort of like them.
posted by BungaDunga at 6:34 PM on March 29, 2018 [2 favorites]

Yes, people really do that. In my experience, middle-aged tech product manager dudes who used to work in jobs related to mobile. Usually they are just jealous that the other guy got faster shipping because theirs isn’t coming until Friday.
posted by matildaben at 6:39 PM on March 29, 2018 [12 favorites]

That's a bad headline. Apple didn't invent the notch. Should read "Bad Android notches are happening to good iPhones".
posted by jwest at 6:47 PM on March 29, 2018

I hate how Android vendors blindly follow every bad idea that Apple has. A decade ago, Android phones had removable storage and batteries but because iPhones didn't have those, the Android phones lost them too. Then Apple took away the headphone jack and the rest blindly followed. Now the stupid notch.
posted by octothorpe at 6:48 PM on March 29, 2018 [34 favorites]

I kind of feel like “phone as status symbol” is an idea people come up with to make sense of the fact that some people are willing to buy different/more expensive phones than they are.

(Except maybe among teenagers. All consumer goods are potential status symbols among teenagers).

But even Apples marketing (which is now totally copied by Samsung and Google and everyone else) was never “buy this phone so other people will think you’re cool.” Thats, like, Axe body spray messaging. Apple’s message was always “buy this phone to make your life cooler.” Which is no more honest. But it’s a different message.
posted by mrmurbles at 6:56 PM on March 29, 2018 [5 favorites]

I just know that when I see "Notch" I think very rich assholes.

It’s been my experience that this isn’t a real correlation, given carrier subsidies and such. This argument kind of feels like a close cousin to the “if they’re so poor why do they have televisions” rhetoric, honestly. It’s not like the price difference in question is comparable to that between a commuter car and, like, a Mercedes S-class.
posted by invitapriore at 7:08 PM on March 29, 2018 [12 favorites]

I just know that when I see "Notch" I think very rich assholes.

Veblen good's mission accomplished.
posted by srboisvert at 7:16 PM on March 29, 2018 [4 favorites]

I live in the richest metropolitan area in the country and can remember seeing an iPhone X in the wild exactly once.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:25 PM on March 29, 2018 [2 favorites]

We started gluing the Z-stack because the biggest cause of carrier heartache was in-warranty returns after drops. Can't have a sealed Z-stack and removable batteries. Removing the storage and headphone jack really simplify the manual assembly and test process, also reduces carrier cost because they are wear items. The Android phones lagged Apple because we didn't have the profit margins to invest in hardware design.

As for the notch, well, Apple's gotta put the sensors somewhere. Android phones don't have the margin to duplicate the hardware, so, fake notches it is.

The bad guys are carrier profits and veblen seekers, but sure, blame Apple I guess. (Extra commas ,,,,,)
posted by pdoege at 7:36 PM on March 29, 2018 [13 favorites]

I've seen a few iPhone Xs out in the wild in NYC. I considered getting one, but I went for the 8 Plus for my two-year upgrade, because 1) First-Generation Apple Hardware tends to be buggy, 2) I really wanted the giant battery that comes with the Plus phone.

The notch? Enh. Whatever. I'll get used to it, though I do think the All Screen Design thing is kinda silly. Even the PADDs on Star Trek had bezels.
posted by SansPoint at 7:40 PM on March 29, 2018

My sister has an X. When the next batch of phones comes out in the summer/fall, I'll probably get an X Plus or a Note 9 myself. I want it for taking and editing photos at times when I don't have my dedicated camera and/or laptop with me. I'd already have a Pixel 2 XL, if not for the horrible blue-tinted screen problem with that particular phone. If you're into photography, the newest generation of flagship phones is a worthwhile step up from your other options. Some really clever computational photography tricks have hit the market, proper color management is starting to become a thing, and screen sizes have gotten larger as well. They are expensive, obviously, but amortized over a couple of years it's not that huge of a hit even for us mortals. Not by the standards of photography gear, anyway. If that's your hobby, the current crop of top-level phones is pretty interesting.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 7:46 PM on March 29, 2018 [3 favorites]

It's not that the Android notches are "fake" - they're still a sensor cluster - it's that they OS isn't designed to take advantage of that extra real estate. The usable part of the screen can either go all the way to the edge and the notch servers at a blockage, or the desktop is designed from the get-go to be non-rectangular. It looks like OnePlus 6 will do the later, pushing the left and right sides of the top notification bar to the left and right of the notch instead of below.
posted by thecjm at 7:49 PM on March 29, 2018 [1 favorite]

I'm all for All Screen if you can still comfortably hold and manipulate the phone without accidentally sending inputs, and if it doesn't make the phone more fragile than phones already are. Why would I want to have bezels if they're not necessary? A phone should just be a magic mirror that you keep in your pocket, basically. I do think that having a glass back is a dumb idea though. I assume at some point we'll see
phones that use synthetic sapphire or diamond instead of glass.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 7:51 PM on March 29, 2018 [6 favorites]

And from the article about the OnePlus, the cost barrier form Android manufacturers isn't the notch (they're all getting these non-rectangular screens from the same vendors as apple) it's in the other end of the phone. Even the top end Android phones still have a "chin" because Apple's solution was to use a more expensive, flexible screen and wrap the bottom edge behind itself so the IO attachment now happens on the back on the screen instead of the bottom.
posted by thecjm at 7:52 PM on March 29, 2018

I think, though, if there's something significant about the notch it's that it represents the first glimmer of a breakaway from the "rectangular screen" paradigm. Since the beginning of moving and even still pictures, images have almost always been rectangular. Moving pictures especially, pretty much without exception. However, there is no real reason for this other than convenience and tradition (stretching back at least to canvas paintings). Digital screens have the potential to be any shape at all, which may help them integrate more seamlessly into our lives. That potential has been so far unrealized and unquestioned, but the notch—as silly as it is—changes that. It's a small step, but it just might be the beginning of a surprisingly big change.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:00 PM on March 29, 2018 [5 favorites]

I think there is a much better argument for rectangular screens than for a notch, myself. I expect a move to a top or side mounted "bump" to hold the camera/proximity sensor/flash in the near future. Nearly edge-to-edge display, with small, classy asymmetrical protrusion differentiating each brands design. Much more functional, and with a very small cost to perceived/usable phone size. (The dimensions will look a lot bigger on paper than they'll feel in your hand/pocket.)
posted by Anoplura at 8:39 PM on March 29, 2018

I got an X a couple of weeks ago and I swear to god I did not notice the notch until I read this thread.
posted by mr_roboto at 9:06 PM on March 29, 2018 [11 favorites]

There's a poetic way of connecting the "notch," forward-facing cameras, and the infamous "blind spot" of the eyeball.

But I just can't see it.
posted by yesster at 9:08 PM on March 29, 2018 [3 favorites]

Reading this on a X right now. I don’t care if people know what phone I have, I’m just an iPhone person and hadn’t upgraded my phone in three years, so it was time. It’s a gorgeous screen, and the camera is fantastic. I don’t really think about the notch but it’s nice to have the clock and icons up there, makes the main screen feel “roomier”.

It’s not my favorite iPhone, though. That’s still the iPhone 5. Man, that was a great phone.
posted by Doleful Creature at 9:44 PM on March 29, 2018 [7 favorites]

I moved from San Francisco Bay Area to Somewhere Else That Isn’t San Francisco Bay Area last year, and I’m happy to report that only two people in a year have asked about my phone. When I traveled back to SFbay at one point I think maybe ten people asked in a single day. Most people back home simply don’t much care what phone someone else has unless they’re shopping for a phone and want guidance.

After half a year the notch faded into my peripheral vision when I’m not dealing with the three draggable areas. It’s clearly there and I just as clearly have no attention to spare for it. Photos look gorgeous and when I zoom in there’s a little notch off the left side but my brain just doesn’t seem to really care.

It’s like the post next to the windshield in a car that prevents you from seeing right there. I stop caring and look around it with slight movements instead. I still notice it from time to time, but I’m generally too busy taking interest in other things to care about the slight obstruction.
posted by crysflame at 9:50 PM on March 29, 2018 [3 favorites]

Also, I miss the form factor that had angled metal edges. I wish I could have that form factor. But I prefer the notchy screen space more than I miss the shape.
posted by crysflame at 9:55 PM on March 29, 2018 [1 favorite]

invitapriore: straight is referring with that comment to Markus Persson, who created Minecraft under the name "Notch" and became a billionaire before siding with the reprehensible side of GamerGate.
posted by jsnlxndrlv at 10:54 PM on March 29, 2018 [3 favorites]

Most of the phones are being produced in the same factories using the same processes. This is not 'some designer decided to copy Apple' but 'our production partners have access to machines to make them like this' and it's cheaper all round if we don't have to do it differently.
posted by toamouse at 11:17 PM on March 29, 2018

As long as the main complaint about new phones, like for the last two years, is the bezels are too big, I guess this is what you get. The new LG phone is rumoured to have a software switch so you can "turn off" the notch and have notifications there, which I think is not a bad idea.
posted by blue shadows at 12:45 AM on March 30, 2018 [3 favorites]

> "Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks?"

Patrick Bateman: New card. What do you think?
Craig McDermott: Whoa-ho. Very nice. Look at that.
Patrick Bateman: Picked them up from the printer's yesterday.
David Van Patten: Good coloring.
Patrick Bateman: That's bone. And the lettering is something called Silian Rail.
David Van Patten: It's very cool, Bateman, but that's nothing. Look at this.
Timothy Bryce: That is really nice.
David Van Patten: Eggshell with Romalian type. What do you think?
Patrick Bateman: Nice.
Timothy Bryce: Jesus. That is really super. How'd a nitwit like you get so tasteful?
Patrick Bateman: [Thinking] I can't believe that Bryce prefers Van Patten's card to mine.
Timothy Bryce: But wait. You ain't seen nothin' yet. Raised lettering, pale nimbus. White.
Patrick Bateman: Impressive. Very nice.
David Van Patten: Hmm.
Patrick Bateman: Let's see Paul Allen's card.
Patrick Bateman: [Thinking] Look at that subtle off-white coloring. The tasteful thickness of it. Oh, my God. It even has a watermark.
posted by kyrademon at 1:53 AM on March 30, 2018 [14 favorites]

I got an X a couple of weeks ago and I swear to god I did not notice the notch until I read this thread.

Me either.

I have an X. I bought it to replace my failing 6. It’s fine so far, but honestly I would have bought the 8 plus if it had been physically smaller (My hands just aren’t that big).
posted by thivaia at 4:31 AM on March 30, 2018 [2 favorites]

I swapped to Android a couple of years ago because Apple left me behind with its design approach (I like a headphone jack, I don't give a shit if it saves you $5; I don't want a thinner phone because I'm putting it in a case so it doesn't smash anyway, so give me more battery; I don't want a screen that is almost all the front of the phone), so I'm dismayed that Android vendors are bringing out phones to chase what Apple thinks people want. Apple only knows what one person wants: Jony Ive, their 'design guru' who can't even make a building where the employees can safely operate the doors.

At least neither Samsung or Google feel the need to follow where Apple goes any more.
posted by Merus at 5:33 AM on March 30, 2018 [4 favorites]

At least neither Samsung or Google feel the need to follow where Apple goes any more.

I just upgraded my phone, I was using a Samsung S6 and I'm now on a Samsung S8. I'm very happy with my choice. I was hemming and hawing between the S8 and the Pixel 2. The main reason I opted for the S8 is because of the headphone jack. I still use it for listening to podcasts in my old Honda Civic with the aux cord and also when I work out.

I would have preferred a more vanilla Android OS experience on my phone, but the quality of the screen on the S8 and the head phone jack were both things that pushed me towards Samsung instead of Google.

I do still feel like many manufacturers are taking their design cues from Apple because Apple has such brand influence and recognition. And they want to stay relevant and potentially grab from that market.
posted by Fizz at 6:33 AM on March 30, 2018

Evolution is nifty. Like those moths with images of eyeballs on their wings, or how wee dinosaurs sing in the tree outside my window to remote control each other’s brains.

Replicating the notch seems like a good reproductive strategy, understanding that tellyphones are virus-like in their life cycle, offloading their sexual apparatus to the amplification effects of primate status competition and associated market forces.

If I were responsible for multiplying instances of a tellyphone model in the world, and I wanted it to be instantly recognized by primates as best, best-like or at least a bit bestish, it would only make sense for me to replicate as many features of best tellyphones as possible, including (and possibly limited to) surface features.

Tellyphones copying successful tellyphones is obvious. The fact that people are surprised or dismayed by this just goes to show you how cut off from nature folks can be.
posted by Construction Concern at 6:43 AM on March 30, 2018 [4 favorites]

The cheapest cash price I could find for an iphone X was walmart 999 dollars.

I looked at the apple site and in three minutes the only numbers I could shake out were for monthly plans. Anybody know the interest rate apple is charging when they loan you money to buy a phone?
posted by bukvich at 6:46 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

The Apple monthly plans are more like a lease.
posted by enn at 7:47 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

Who even notices phones these days?

Kids. Phones are a huge status indicator in middle and high school, and I assume for many young adults too.
posted by gnutron at 7:49 AM on March 30, 2018 [2 favorites]

W/r/t the Apple Tax, if you don't feel like spending that much on a new phone... Don't. If you do want an iPhone speficically, you can buy the older model, as a brand new iPhone 7 is going to work just fine for people who just need a smartphone. Or, you can pick up an Apple Refurbished iPhone for even less. But there's still Android phones out there you can buy outright for less that are still darn good phones. Wirecutter suggests the Moto G5, which can be bought, outright, for $230, and there's a budget pick (the Moto E4) you can get for $130 as well.

It's all a question of priority and need. If you need A Phone, and don't want to go into hock paying a monthly fee, you have options. If you want a Specific Brand Phone, go get the Specific Brand You Like.

The only concern I have with Android is security, so if you're the paranoid sort, I would push you towards an iPhone, as they're more secure out of the box and easier to secure for the average person than an Android phone. However, I don't believe there should be a "privacy tax" that requires people to pay more, sometimes way more, for a more secure device, but that's a matter for a different thread.
posted by SansPoint at 7:53 AM on March 30, 2018 [2 favorites]

bukvich, Apple charges 0% interest rate when you finance through them but they require their insurance plan (Apple+) in the monthly payment. As enn mentioned, it’s kinda/sorta a lease. You have the option to trade in on a new phone after 1 year. If you don’t trade in, you own the phone outright after 2 years.
posted by Eddie Mars at 8:20 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

Apple was not the first hardware manufacturer to make a phone without an aux port. There were a few Android phones that had already tried that. The difference is that apple offers essentially one OS version and only small variations on one form factor while Android runs on a number of different devices, covering a wider range of form and cost, and there are more software variations running in the wild. So when Apple changes something like removing the audio port or adding a notch, it hits nearly their entire share of the market, making for a more dramatic adjustment.

I have an X because, well, the store had an X in stock but was out of the 8plus, and I'd been waffling between the two when I was replacing my dead 6plus. I actually miss the home button more than I mind the notch, because I often use the phone where it's super annoying to have to pick it up and hold it in front of my face, instead of just reaching my hand over, so I have to wake, wait for it to realize my face isn't there, then put in my unlock code. (Also, it only knows my face in portrait orientation, so I can't use facial recognition to wake right into landscape.) In use, I think the "most hated" thing gets attached to the notch more because people don't like change.
posted by Karmakaze at 8:24 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

Free idea for librarians and booksellers: bookmark shaped like a notch.
posted by Former Congressional Representative Lenny Lemming at 8:27 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

you can buy the older model, as a brand new iPhone 7 is going to work just fine for people who just need a smartphone. Or, you can pick up an Apple Refurbished iPhone for even less.

This is good advice for saving some money, but I'd also confirm what bandwidths are supported on the specific cellular network you're on. You want to make sure you're not buying a phone that does not have support for your cellular network in your geographic region. In most places an iPhone 7 is going to be fine, it's a relatively recent phone, but doesn't hurt to check.
posted by Fizz at 8:41 AM on March 30, 2018 [2 favorites]

Fizz: I think all iPhones since the 6S support pretty much every commonly used frequency in the US. If you're buying overseas, best to buy from your overseas Apple retailer. This does get thornier, however, with cheap Android phones, but (again, I think) unlocked Motorola Android phones also have pretty wide carrier support in terms of frequency.
posted by SansPoint at 9:38 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

Markus Persson, who created Minecraft under the name "Notch" and became a billionaire before siding with the reprehensible side of GamerGate.

There was a photo of him at Stockholm Arlanda Airport, on a wall of famous locals, a few months ago; it did not succeed at making him not look like some kind of awful far-right extremist.
posted by acb at 9:58 AM on March 30, 2018

Jobs would have nixed the notch in no time. It's visually intrusive in ways that bezels aren't; if you want to do something to visually distinguish your phone you have an entire back surface to play with, and flirting with fashion flummery in ways that detract from primary use cases is just irksome.

I understand (but do not subscribe to) the status effect that keeps Apple so goddamn rich, and you can't have status symbols that aren't recognisable. I prefer to signal my status as someone who appreciates good, affordable functionality, and I'm resisting getting a new phone because my Moto X Play has been everything I needed. But the battery's fading now and while I can replace it (fourteen Torx 4 screws and some glue-wrangling required) the replacement I bought doesn't work. Plus, if I can hold on long enough for Google Treble to work its way down the ecosystem, that's probably a sensible move. Yes, I could do the custom ROM thing, but life is short.

Wjem I look at something like the £200 Xiaomi Mi A1 - 64GB storage, decent battery, earphone jack (NOT negotiable), nice screen, good CPU, creditable build quality, etc - which in adjusted terms is four times cheaper than the original iPhone, well that to me is a celebration of an awesome technology arc in ways that flagship phones are not. And no bloody notch.
posted by Devonian at 10:04 AM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

"I just know that when I see "Notch" I think very rich assholes."

I would never have noticed the notch and I doubt I will moving forward. In the off-chance I notice someone has an iPhone, I do think they have too much money and possibly aren't very good with technology, but that's about it. Spacephones have become so ubiquitous and essentially interchangeable it really doesn't matter anymore which phone a person ends up with. If anything, an obsession with phone brands and models is more of an important character flaw to note than what specific phone a person might have.
posted by GoblinHoney at 10:20 AM on March 30, 2018

I develop mobile apps for a boring consumer financial services company. When a few of my coworkers got iphone Xes, we of course installed our apps and complained about how the apps didn't take advantage of the extra screen space around the notch. But we have yet to add that to our implementation plans, to my knowledge. I'm sure that decision has much to do with the fact that 1.) our customers tend to be lower income and therefore not many have the expensive toy, and 2.) our apps are just essentially banking apps, and there's no real use case for that real estate. But if the notch were the big deal that all this implies, I'm sure we'd have worked on it by now.
posted by tippiedog at 1:04 PM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

The notch is irritating to me. Irritating enough that I went with the 8 rather than the X. Not that the notch was the reason entirely - I don't trust FaceID to be more convenient than the TouchID, for example, and the price difference was not trivial - but the notch weighed into the decision.

If people are going to copy "innovations" I want to see someone innovate by getting rid of the damn camera bump. I dislike the camera bump. It needs to die. I'd rather have the phone be 2 mm thicker with no bump. (The only people not bothered by the bump are people who use phone cases. I have not had a phone case since getting rid of my 3GS in like 2010 or so.)
posted by caution live frogs at 1:27 PM on March 30, 2018 [3 favorites]

I was just in a Target a few minutes ago and took a look at the iPhone X and other than the notch, it's really a boring looking phone. Not sure how that's worth a grand.
posted by octothorpe at 4:30 PM on March 30, 2018

All the money went into the logo on the back.
posted by Greg_Ace at 5:17 PM on March 30, 2018 [2 favorites]

I dunno, phones pretty much all look the same? It's a screen you can hold in your hand. I always put mine in a case anyway, so I give zero fucks about what it looks like. If it's worth a grand, it's because of what it can do, not because of what it looks like.

Anyway, this notch business is just temporary. The next step is to have the front-facing sensors be able to work through the screen, at which point the notch will go away. It's in development, give it a year or two.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 5:28 PM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

> "Do...people really immediately stare at each others' phones and give jealous looks?"

Patrick Bateman: New card. What do you think?

Wait, do people think Bret Easton Ellis was, like, a journalist? He had about as much regard for Wall Streeters -- and about as much firsthand, personal experience of them -- as the average MeFite.

Don't get me wrong, Wall St is empirically full of evil people. But BEE is not your guide to what they say or how they think.
posted by mrmurbles at 8:28 PM on March 30, 2018

Phones are thankfully boring now

Edgeless, bezelless phones are a pain in the ass to hold or use, and I'm going to bet they'll be a general passing fad, or it'll at least eventually shift back to some kind of minimal bezel and set of edges for landscape viewing so that you can actually hold and use your phone without covering parts of the screen or accidentally touching the touch screen.

Last fall while I was meeting up with my mom in Seattle - which will become relevant in a moment - I finally killed another cheap commodity prepaid smartphone, an earlier Motorola that had lived for over a year with a broken screen. The USB charging port basically fell out and corroded away.

The replacement is also an affordable Motorola Moto E4, which as far as I know is still one of the best deals going, feature wise. Great, crisp and bright screen. Great dual cameras, fingerprint reader, most modern smartphone features. I think it's mainly missing NFC stuff, which I don't use or care about. Quad core Snapdragon, plenty fast. Super great battery life, like up to 8 days in low power modes. Oh, and the battery can actually be removed and has a nice slim tactile rubberized back with a nearly shatterproof slightly rounded design.

I've futzed and fumbled and done that stupid thing where you try to catch your phone, and instead you throw it at the ground on surfaces that would have shattered all glass iphones or seriously bent the metal ones. Surfaces including brick, concrete and heavy gravel.

Cash out the door it's like 170. With a Verizon account it was like 70. At 70 it's basically 1/10th the price of a new iPhone 7, and with about 8/10ths the speed and features.

So I took my mom with me to the store when I went to get it, and she is at this point really into her Apple everything, and it's partially the fault of my brother and I for not wanting to keep doing Windows support. And last time I saw her she had an apple watch and either a 7 or 8s iPhone.

After I pick up my new phone and I'm setting things up I let her check it out. She notes that the display is effectively visually identical to the Retina display on her phone, that they're both of such a fine pitch you can't really see the pixels any more. She also notes my phone is already up and running and synced to the cloud, just like an iPhone.

And she pauses for a minute and asks "So, wait, what exactly am I paying for, then?"

"I honestly have no idea."

At this point they're basically identical, except on balance I think the Android phones are cheaper and last a long longer, both via hardware life and updates.

I still have an original Android G1 that would still work, would still talk to T-Mobile in 2G/3G modes, and would still even show videos on YouTube and browse modern web pages with Opera mobile. If I could just find any new-old stock batteries that haven been left to go flat and completely dead. Hell, I was still using that up until like three and a half years ago and I'd probably still be using it if the last three batteries I tried weren't all dead flat.
posted by loquacious at 9:17 PM on March 30, 2018 [1 favorite]

> "Wait, do people think Bret Easton Ellis was, like, a journalist?"

No.
posted by kyrademon at 3:56 AM on March 31, 2018

Uh, I think the Bret Easton Ellis quote makes the point it was intended to make.

I also find the notch stupid.
posted by aspersioncast at 5:38 PM on March 31, 2018

To be pedantic, it was a Mary Harron and Guinevere Turner quote since they wrote the movie where that's from.
posted by octothorpe at 6:12 PM on March 31, 2018