Note that every time a company comes up with a choice between a smaller phone and a larger phone (up to some limit when you get into phablet territory), the larger phone sells in much, much higher numbers. Apple themselves tried the Mini, it sold at best a few percent of how well the regular phones sell.

While you, personally, might prefer smaller phones, and that's a perfectly valid preference, you are very much in the minority.

it pretty explicitly does, it just means you don't like them.

If they are bad, why do people prefer them?

I mean kinda, yeah. Since that's literally the only kind of smartphone you can get nowadays.

100% there’s no “normal size” iPhones anymore

The original "phablet" was the Samsung Galaxy Note, considered comically large. At 147mm x 83mm, it's about the same size as the iPhone 18 Pro (150mm x 72mm)

Yes, the note 3 was considered "phablet", and it's much smaller than even ip17 now.

Uh, yes? The first widespread usage of the word "phablet" I can recall was regarding the HTC HD2, which had a whopping 4.3" display and some people were losing their minds saying nobody would want to carry that in their pockets.