The Best Phones Have Boring Designs (And That's a Good Thing)

howtogeek.com:

It's exciting when a new phone feels completely different from what came before. Thing is, that's not what most people actually want. When a smartphone design is good, we want it to stay good, and frankly, most modern phones are good. That phones largely look the same year after year is actually a blessing, not a curse.

If you've walked away from the latest phone unveiling feeling underwhelmed by the lack of change, here's the bright side of the status quo.

We've Figured Out How to Make Good Phones

When a technology is new, experimentation is the name of the game. We don't already know which design is the most durable, how to make gadgets waterproof, or how to allow for passive cooling. We're not even sure which of these things is important.

That's not where we are anymore. Smartphone makers have figured out how to make incredibly powerful, lightweight, beautiful, and impressively durable devices. There are ways to tweak the design, but doing so often introduces drawbacks. This is why we are in the age of smartphone conformity. When it comes to slab phones, changes in design are largely change for change's sake.

Even when it comes to foldable phones, developers know how to make great ones. Most of the experimentation has to do with durability and miniaturization, making components small enough that you can still fit flagship cameras on a device where each half needs to be thinner than that of an average phone. It would also be nice to get rid of the crease. But the fundamentals? Those are nailed down already.

Consistency Is Good for Brand Recognition

Most people don't closely follow the release of every new phone. They buy their phone, they wait two or three years, and then they get a new one. If they like the phone they have, then they probably look for a phone similar to the one they already own.

Now that all phones are similarly shaped slabs, people tell the difference between brands by the differences in their design. iPhones have their cameras arranged in a