Instead of increasing the durability of Pixels, Google is designing them to be case-friendly

It is a well-known fact that the majority of smartphone owners use some sort of protective case. Although some cases offer additional features, like a kickstand, a slot to store credit cards, or magnetic charging, the main reason people use cases is because the phones are made of glass and break easily.

In a new interview with ReverseGoogle Pixel design lead Claude Zellweger explained how the company approaches phone design, particularly when it comes to the use of cases. Interestingly, Zellweger admits that starting with the Pixel 8 series, Google started designing phones with cases in mind from the start.

Here’s what Zellweger had to say:

You should always think about every aspect of the product. One of the important things is that 90% of the use cases are done. With the Pixel 8, seriously, we started designing the product with the case from the beginning. So just like color isn’t an afterthought, cases can’t be an afterthought because you have to design them so that they look good and feel good to the touch.

While this sounds good on paper (phones and cases being designed to work together is a benefit to the user), what’s totally left out is the very fragile nature of the phones Google designs. It seems a bit circuitous to say, “We design phones to work better with cases” and not say, “We design phones to work better with cases.” without case. »

For some reason, the “glass sandwich” smartphone design has become the de facto method, at least in the high-end segment. There are very few phones priced above $700 that don’t feature this design. Shouldn’t there be plenty of room for innovation so we can have phones that feel good, look great, and work great without needing to involve a case?

While I appreciate Google’s ambitions to use design to make its products more appealing to consumers, with or without a case, I think the arbitrary 90% statistic thrown around by Zellweger is not the product of people. to want cases, but rather people knowing that it is necessary to preserve their fragile investments. If phones were simply more durable, that 90% figure would drop significantly, as more people would be comfortable with their phone without a case and enjoy its pure design.

Regardless, the rest of the interview is worth reading, especially if you want to learn more about how the company is approaching the camera bar on Pixel phones.