I would happily ditch the selfie camera for a full-screen phone

There is no way mass-market phones are giving up on the camera that allows for video conferencing / FaceTime. Don't trivialize the utility by calling it the "selfie" camera. And don't claim you've confirmed it's useless by checking your camera roll.

I've been thinking lately about why all PCs have a light that indicates when their cameras are in use but smartphones don't. My conspiratorial self can't help but wonder if that omission could be intentional.

The OnePlus 7 Pro (their new flagship phone) has a hidden selfie camera that extends out when in selfie mode.

I'm like the author of the article and largely I don't need a selfie camera. It's useful to have in the rare cases where I need to video chat or need a digital mirror real quick.

I'm actually very disappointed that the newer OnePlus 7T went back to having a camera notch but I suppose that means that enough of their customers didn't like the feature.

This problem has been solved: Xiaomi has put the selfie camera behind the screen [1]

[1] https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/6/5/18654365/xi...

The selfie camera is useful for video chatting, but I do wish they could tuck it into the display or shrink it into the small bezels of the iPhone.

Selfies were the near death of asking strangers to snap a group photo for you. I offer whenever I can, crack a lame joke to get the group smiling. It's sad to think how many things we've done that have inadvertently put up social walls with strangers.

Xiaomi's 9T Pro[0] has a pop-up selfie camera. If I actually wanted an Android phone then I'd be all over that one in particular.

[0] https://www.gsmarena.com/xiaomi_mi_9t_pro-9791.php

I think almost everyone has forgotten that the reflective Apple logo on the back of the original iphone was described by Apple as the selfie mirror. I doubt they used the word “selfie” which may not have been coined back then, but I can’t remember the exact phrase.

I used to think that those cases with a hole to show the logo were for people who wanted that mirror but now I just wonder why.

Yeah “the notch” has been around for a long time now. Anyway, the notch is very functional and very useful. Without it, you can only handle the phone by its sides. With it, you can easily pass the phone by placing your thumb on the notch. A full screen phone would be very cumbersome especially with how big phones are nowadays.

I don't mind borders around the screen. Screens have been plenty big for the last 5 years anyway.