Every time Apple announces a new development to its beloved iPhone, people find something to gripe about. Whether it’s the new layout, the thickness of the phone or the battery life, you can expect to find iPhone users getting a bit het up about changes to something they pick up 105 times a day. Yes, really.
So what’s the issue with the latest iPhone 6? Well techies across the internet are worried about its size. At present, we personally find the iPhone 5 can fit – snugly – into the front pocket of a skinny Baxter jean from Topshop (a jean we’d say is the most average, standard out there). If we’re feeling stupid, or in a place with people we utterly trust, it fits really perfectly into either of the jean’s back pockets, too.
However, as the iPhone is to go taller to 5.5 inches or even 6.2 inches (it’s currently 4.87 inches) some bloggers are saying that could be a problem.
‘People don’t just buy phones for the technical specs and product features, as tech bloggers tend to believe. They use them as fashion statements and lifestyle accessories, as much as communication devices,’ a writer at* Business Insider* explains. ‘So if women feel the iPhone 6 Plus isn’t for them because they don’t have hands or pockets big enough to hold the thing, it could theoretically retard sales.’
One female writer wrote on Re/code: ‘It didn’t fit well in pockets. And it was too big to hold in my hand, or even wear on my arm, during fitness activities. This is key for me.’
Another at* Bustle* said: ‘Women may not be so lucky with the new iPhones. There are two possible solutions here: bigger pockets for jeans. Or smaller phones. What’ll it be, world?’
GottaBeMobile even released this video to see if an iPhone 6 could fit into a very ugly pair of women’s jeans (short answer: no, to both the jeans and whether the new phones can properly fit in them).
But it’s not only women who are worried about their pocket size, as one male tech writer, Galen Gruman for InfoWorld explained: ‘One issue I have with phablets [phones that are almost as big as tablets] is pocket fit – or the lack thereof in a standard men’s shirt pocket. Technically, it fits, but not comfortably or securely.’
Helpfully, CNET has provided a template of the size of the phone that you can print out, cut out then check if it fits into your pocket (clue: if the template has to bend to fit in, the IRL phone won’t fit).
Maybe Apple actually want users to stop flinging their phones into their back pockets? Or it’s about getting users to commit both hands to their phone when they’re texting. Or most heinously, are they trying to revive the cargo pant?
Or, perhaps – given that the product hasn’t actually launched yet – is it that Apple has got something much better (but not bigger) planned for us all? Here’s hoping!
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** Follow Sophie on Twitter @sophwilkinson**
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.