How to manage a big iPhone with small hands

Recently, I switched service providers and made the jump from an iPhone X to an iPhone 11 Pro Max. As a 5'5 person, my favorite sized iPhone was the original, (now tiny) 1st gen iPhone.

Over the years, the smallest iPhones options have gotten bigger. I figured, might as well go with the biggest one since I can’t reach across the screen anyways.

The switch from iPhone X to iPhone 11 Pro max

Initially, it felt horrible. I asked my sister if she wanted to trade me her regular sized iPhone because I was unable to do things like grip during one handed typing. I would walk around campus trying to text and being afraid that it would fall out of my hand.

My pinky was too weak to comfortably leverage the phone while scrolling through social media. Pulling the control center down during one handed use went from difficult to impossible. Now, even reaching the bottom corner was hard.

Everything was driving me to use the phone with two hands like it was some sort of tablet. That is, until days went by. For some reason, about a week later I started forming better habits without trying.

How I got used to the big phone

After a week, my pinky got used to the extra weight. Subconsciously, I figured out how to bend my hand to pull the control center down more effectively. And in the end, balancing the phone while typing became a bit more manageable.

I was honestly surprised how much of a difference just giving the phone some time made. As a small person, I was having legitimate buyers remorse. Now, a few weeks in, the iPhone X looks tiny and I can’t believe that I ever used it.

But there was one essential feature that I had to force myself to start using. That was the one-hand mode / reachability thing, or whatever it is called. Basically, you swipe downwards at the bottom of your screen and it will pull the interface closer to your thumbs. Some people have this feature disabled, so you might have to turn it on.

Usually, instead of pressing dedicated back buttons which are usually at the top of apps, I am able to swipe right across the screen for the same functionality. One-handed mode is most helpful when pulling down the notification or control center, and is the only way to do that without reaching.

Learn the accessibility gestures

• One-handed mode — swipe down on the bottom 15% of the screen
• Forget the back button — swipe right across your screen instead
• Fix text fast — hold the space bar and slide your finger to the right or left, depending on where the text is that you need to fix

Other than that, pop-sockets can help as long as you don’t use a wireless charger. Good luck getting used to your big phone, hope it works out for you like it did for me!