# Apple iPhone 4 Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-4/ 15 people recommended Apple iPhone 4 in Hacker News comments, 8 had mixed feelings and 18 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 8 of 12 months, in 14 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** More people criticize it than recommend it. People praise its form factor, width and design as a high point of Apple's lineup; the most common caveat is the antenna problem, where holding the phone a certain way hurt reception. Summary written by Claude from the comments below. ## What people warn about - Antenna reception problems when held (5 comments in the sample): "Jobs wasn't exactly wrong (the antenna worked OK if you didn't bridge it with your finger" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50218322)) "how bad the reception was in your iPhone 4, and how it ruined the experience of owning it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47535578)) "the iphone 4 antenna was obstructed by normal holding of the phone" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45851640)) - Flat back scratches and slips (2 comments in the sample): "the flat back not only makes it susceptible to scratching, it makes it hard to pick up off of smooth surfaces" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48690762)) "the feel was off - it seemed too fancy and too easy to break or scratch" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50128249)) ## Why people recommend it - Praised form factor and size (5 comments in the sample): "I loved the iPhone 4 format factor, but prefer more recent and larger editions for battery life and battery longevity." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46569034)) "Still the best form factor has the iPhone 4 in my opinion." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48627185)) "The width of the iPhone 4 was nearly perfect imo." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49631500)) - Beautiful, well-designed look (4 comments in the sample): "iPhone 4 and iOS 7 were the first ones that looked pleasant (don't confuse aesthetics with UX though" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47362756)) "It no longer feels like a sleek device of the future like the iPhone 4 did." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49649311)) "the iPhone 4 was great and I was a satisfied customer" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49521372)) - Speed and features ahead of rivals (3 comments in the sample): "it was the first mix of speed and features that made me and many many colleagues say" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47545508)) "still the best smartphone of that year and leaps ahead of it's closest competition" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47252625)) "the iPhone really hit its stride with 4" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47556981)) - Long-lasting, reliable phone (2 comments in the sample): "Mine lasted forever and I think it was my longest lasting one." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49832202)) "4 still shipped with buttons my mum could recognise." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50188147)) ## Other smartphones people recommend - [Apple iPhone](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone/): 438 recommend, 190 mixed, 789 criticize - [Fairphone](https://hackerapproved.com/p/fairphone/): 110 recommend, 42 mixed, 94 criticize - [iPhone 13 mini](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-13-mini/): 105 recommend, 32 mixed, 44 criticize - [Apple iPhone Pro](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-17-pro/): 90 recommend, 45 mixed, 138 criticize ## The badge A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged. ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Apple iPhone 4", https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-4/ (15 recommend, 8 mixed, 18 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026). Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.