Archive: Business & Technology

All the hype and all the chatter about the iPhone 6 Plus obscures common sense.  Is it too big to carry?  Could it replace an iPad?  Is it even usable?  The bottom line is that if you have a big telephone it's going to be easy to use and clumsy to carry.  It doesn't take too many brains to figure that out.

Because the wait was so long from the time I ordered my new phone to a month later when it finally arrived, I started worrying that I would not like it when it finally arrived.  I read all the reviews.  I held a full-size paper cut out of the phone in my hand.  I constantly reminded myself of the reasons I wanted a much bigger phone.  And I told myself that just because the very idea of a word like 'phablet' (phone-tablet) disgusts me, it doesn't mean I wouldn't like my new phone.

Upgrading was a practical decision.  I am no longer that guy who has to upgrade to the latest greatest just because it is.  My eyes aren't what they used to be, and my old phone, while wonderful in many ways, was very hard to see.   Additionally, my fingers are a lot fatter than the keyboard keys on that little phone. Try typing a password with fat fingers and bad eyesight!

So how easy to use is the iPhone 6? And how clumsy is it to carry?

I'll answer the second one first. It's a little clumsy, but it certainly carryable.  If I put it in my shirt pocket a bit less than an inch sticks out. It's quite thin and weighs less than it looks like it ought to.  It feels like it might be easy to drop, so I definitely recommend some sort of protective case.  It fits –– snugly –– in my jacket pocket. My hand is big enough that it feels comfortable to me.  But I would not recommend it for somebody with small hands, especially if one-handed operation is important to them.

The iPhone 6 Plus doesn't disappoint where readability is concerned. Between the large size of the screen and the absolute clarity of the retina display, I almost feel like I got new glasses.  I once tried to watch a movie on the old phone.  All the characters were so small I couldn't tell them apart.  This one is big enough that I would watch a movie if I didn't have my iPad handy.  Or a movie theater.

The sleep/wake button has been moved from the top of the phone to the side.  I actually like it better there, but with the volume buttons directly opposite it is awkward to click sleep/wake without inadvertently also clicking a volume button.  They also moved the headphone jack from the top to the bottom.  That may be an issue for people who use docks with their phones, but I don't so i don't care as long as I can plug into it.


Apps use the phone display version, which, compared to the iPad Version, sometime seems limited.  For instance, I have one app that I use quite a bit that has two halves on the iPad version.  The information on the halves relates, so it is useful to see them together.  The phone version only shows one half at a time as two separate screens.  The 6 Plus is big enough to handle the iPad versions.  Nevertheless, moving around the apps is a lot easier, especially when entering data, including passwords.

I know I'm behind the times because my old phone didn't have this, but I am enjoying the fingerprint recognition, especially in specific apps that support it in the new iOS 8.  So instead of typing on a little phone I can just use my thumb print to open my password safe.  You have to have it enabled for using the phone to make it work for individual apps -- I wish it were not that way, because I don't much like locking my phone, but I definitely want to lock sensitive apps.

I replaced my laptop with an iPad years ago.  Will I replace the iPad with my new big phone?  I don't think I'll be giving up the iPad any time soon.  The iPhone 6 Plus will be a lot more usable in a pinch if it's all I have handy in an emergency, though.  For example, I can do most of what I need to do on the iPad, but I need a computer for a few tasks.  I can take over my computer via the Internet from anywhere with a wifi hot spot using an iPad app.  My old phone was almost unusably too small to do that.  The 6 Plus is still small to do it smoothly, but it is certainly better than the old phone in dire emergencies.

All in all, common sense wins out.  The phone is fabulous (if not phabulous).  It's easy to see, easy to use, better for Web browsing, has seriously good battery life, and it ain't bad for talking on the phone!  It is a bit clumsy to carry around, but if ever there was a first world problem, that is it!

I give it two thumbs up.  Yes, the same thumbs I can now use for more accurate typing.

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