John Moltz on the 4.7-inch screen of the iPhone 6:

I like my iPhone 6 well enough, but having used it for six months am I ready to fully submit to our large screen overlords? Not in the least. The large screen is the one thing I don’t like about it. It frustrates me daily. Reachability does not work consistently enough to be reliable and I can’t reach the upper right corner without that thumb-extension surgery which my health plan doesn’t cover. […]

I want an iPhone with a 4-inch screen, but in the end I’m going to buy what I think is the best iPhone. That’s what I did before the iPhone 6 and that’s what I’ll continue to do. I can’t say that one feature is a deal breaker without knowing what all the options are. I hope there will be a 4-inch iPhone this year in metal with the majority of the new features, but I doubt that will happen.

I occasionally bring up the “larger than 4-inch phone” topic with my fiancée and she couldn’t be more adamant about her dislike of them. She still uses an iPhone 5s, but plans to upgrade this fall when Apple announces their new iPhone lineup. And, she’s very worried that Apple won’t announce an iPhone that’s best for her.

The 5s is just small enough to fit comfortably in her back pocket — anything larger simply wouldn’t fit and she’d be stuck keeping it in her purse or carrying it around by hand everywhere she goes. Neither of which are ideal as it would make interacting with and keeping track of her iPhone incredibly cumbersome and would prevent her from using her iPhone as a pedometer (which has quickly become an essential feature for her). She also prefers the physical dimensions of the 5s over the 6 and 6 Plus as it fits better in her hand and is therefore easier for her to use.

She really doesn’t like the idea of using an iPhone that doesn’t feel comfortable to use. But, she still feels compelled to purchase the best device she can in order to ensure it will still feel snappy toward the end of our typical two year upgrade cycle. Like John, she truly hopes Apple will release a 4-inch version of “the best iPhone” that’s built with the same quality materials and has a similar feature-set as their higher end models. But, she’s unfortunately prepared to be disappointed.