Not long ago, our Best Phones guide presented models in all shapes and sizes, from the Samsung Galaxy Type Tablet to the iPhone 5c of bright colors.
In these days, however, the sides of flat metal, the gently rounded corners and the dull industrial colors are the order of the day, with apparently prioritized discreet style and style on “Look at my new phone!” personality.
But is this bad homogeneity? Despite its simplicity, the best (and best -selling) phones today are objectively higher devices for their most characteristic predecessors, and the best folding phones (think of Galaxy Z Flip 6) are ready and waiting for those whose favor of conformity is fun.
To discover how you, our readers, feel about the modern smartphone design, we publish an article in February encouraging you to say your opinion.
We conducted a survey on the Techradar WhatsApp channel along with that article, and a huge 1,483 of you answered the question “How do you feel about the design of flagship phones in 2025?”. Here are the results:
As you can see, an overwhelming majority of respondents – 915 (62%) – replied with the answer ‘Modern intelligent telephone designs are boring, I miss the variety!’ Another 235 (16%) selected the third option: “Modern smartphone designs are boring, but I understand the need for conformity,” which means that 78% of respondents feel negatively on the state of smartphone design in 2025.
Only 204 respondents (14%) think that smartphone design is better than ever, while 129 (8%) even lower that there is still enough variety in the smartphone market. Suffice it to say that it will not provide a happy reading for manufacturers such as Apple, Samsung and Google.
For almost all important brands, smartphone sales have constantly decreased since 2021 (through ICIS), and it is clear that the innovative characteristics of AI have not yet demonstrated the development of industry savings that clearly expected it to be.
That said, it is difficult to sign up for the boring designs of smartphones as the only reason, or even the main reason, for this descending trend.
Consumers’ purchase patterns have changed; It is no longer feasible, or even advisable, replacing your smartphone every two years, and most consumers now choose to do it after four or five.
Even the best cheap phones will now remain compatible with software updates for up to seven years, and their sets of chips and batteries are advanced enough to see that period easily. Of course, modern smartphones are boring, but they are extremely practical and adequate for their purpose: Does it really matter that everyone looks equal?
It is a question that will undoubtedly play in the minds of the company’s executives throughout the industry. Apple, for example, has been criticized for keeping the same “boring” iPhone formula for too long, but will you risk getting into your golden goose for the good of the variety? The last rumors of iPhone 17 suggest that it will do so, although it is difficult to believe that a slightly more adventurous camera module design will cause a tide of iPhone updates.
As our survey demonstrates, consumers cry out for something new, but a nostalgia element is undoubtedly at stake here.
What do you think smartphone manufacturers should do to give life to the stagnant smartphone market? Let us know in the comments.
