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Comment by bubaumba | Hacker News Reader

> What about the dozens (at this point hundreds) of phone models that are both rainproof and have a replaceable battery

If that's what you are looking for just get one. It may come even with spyware preinstalled. Then try it underwater, should be fine if it's in specs, right?

I just switched from Android for security primarily. The rest is a bonus. The problem is smartphone becomes a single point of failure. If it gets stolen I can't even work without authentication apps.

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Sealing electrical stuff from water is literally 19th century tech. Plenty of underwater flashlights exist even today. If they just lose the obsession with thinness in phones, almost every other problem becomes trivial to solve. Instead they make the ultra thin, breakable phone, and then users put it in a protective case which eliminates the thinness anyway.

Thin phones are good. This is a thing you carry around in your pocket all day, you’ll notice almost every millilitre thicker and gram heavier it gets.

That's what Steve Jobs used to say and that's why Apple phones were 3.5 inches until he died. Who uses a 3.5 inch phone now? In fact small phones basically don't exist anymore. There were credit card or cigarette lighter sized phones that weighed under an ounce but they were 2G GSM, so now they are e-waste. There is nothing to replace them. Meanwhile the Unihertz Tank 2 weighs about a pound (22,000 mAH battery) and it's imho attractive, except too expensive.

I think it’s important especially because phones have gotten larger on the x and y axes that they remain light and small in the z axis in order to maintain pocketability. There are very thick phones with giant batteries out there for people who want that, but I think Apple has been striking the perfect balance.

What? Phones are getting bigger and bigger that people can't put them in pocket now.

But don't people use phone cases anyway to protect these fragile devices? what's the point then?

They are not that fragile if you don't drop hard. Never used case for A50, it still looks almost new after years of active use. But for iphone I got a thin case, to protect popping out cameras and to make it look cool. Main concern is thieves if I travel somewhere, not the physical damage.

Unless you drop them very hard, cases are not needed anymore. Been using a Iphone 12 pro max for 4 years without a case, I don't even look twice and I drop it from the table.

X mm phone + Y mm case < (X + 1) mm phone + Y mm case

X+Y+1~=X+Y when X,Y>>1. Does it really matter if you have a 16mm or 17mm phone + case?

Thicker, stronger phone = not need protective case.

Cases protect against scratches and dents, not breaking the phone in half...

Your post doesn't make sense.

A commenter complains that Apple uses a lot of adhesive inside their phones so they are not really a thing of beauty. Someone replies that it's because of water proofing. Another person points out that, no, actually plenty of companies make waterproof phones without using glue so Apple could. You tell them to go buy other another phone.

How is it in any way related to beautiful design, waterproofing and glue use in manufacturing?

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