Take #HairGate. The hashtag has sprung up on social media as a number of women are finding that the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are tearing out their hair. When they hold the phone up to take a call, long hairs are getting trapped in the gap between the glass screen and the aluminium cover. It means that they when they end a call and move the phone, the hair is ripped out of their head. (Beard-owners have been affected too).
It might sound ridiculous to the short-haired amongst you, but it does happen and it's not fun. Take it from someone who knows.
But that's not the only issue with the new iPhones. Both phones are so large - even the iPhone 6 has a 4.7 inch screen - that they're pretty cumbersome. For someone with small hands, it's incredibly hard to type one-handed on the iPhone 6 Plus, as the screen is so large. Even typing with two thumbs is a challenge. This also suggests that the phone was designed exclusively with men in mind.(Yes I do know men have small hands too - but typically they are larger than women's).
The size also makes it near impossible to put an iPhone 6 Plus into a standard woman's jean pocket. I tried to fit it into the back pocket of my skinny jeans and failed. I had even less luck with the front pocket, and with rumours about the phone bending in people's back pockets, it looked like that would have been the only option. So far, so average.
I contacted Apple to hear what it had to say about this, but am yet to hear back.
Women aren't being catered for
The phone is too big to fit in most people's jeans
Admittedly, men have complained about 'pocketgate' too. Even their larger pockets are struggling with the iPhone 6 Plus, but for women - who already have limited pocket access on clothes - it's much harder. Even when I decided to upgrade to the iPhone 6 instead, I found it difficult to put it onto my pockets. It still won't fit in any front pockets, and only fits in my back ones without a case. Practical it isn't.
It's why some women's clothes designers are now rushing to adapt their designs to fit the phones. American Eagle has said it is toying with the idea of producing a women's line which will have deeper pockets, like the ones the men's line already has. American brand and Michelle Obama favourite, J. Crew, is considering a similar option.
'It's an issue because I think women aren't being catered for,' says Liza Kindred, founder of fashion tech think tank, Third Wave Fashion. 'The same thing is happening in technology that we have seen in healthcare. There are so many standards that are set by looking at a male body.
'It's the same problem in the tech world - it's designed for men and women can use it - if they can figure out how to hold it. I feel it's a bit of an unspoken problem that a lot of people don't seem to acknowledge because women don't want to be seen as complaining about it. They don't want to speak up about it. People are embarrassed.'
Foundation on your screen? Been there
There's nothing worse than finding make-up on your screen
Kindred has a point. Most of the people who have complained about their hair being ripped out by their iPhone 6 have done it in a jokey way, using either the hashtag #HairGate to make light of it, or #FirstWorldProblems. Coming out and seriously admitting that this bothers you would just lead to inevitable mockery, and perhaps even trolling. And yet, women, just like men, have parted with serious sums of cash for this piece of kit.
There are other issues too. One commonly acknowledged problem is that most mobiles have vibrate functions, which is great if you keep your phone in your pocket. However, many women keep their phones in their handbags. Consequently for the majority of the day, the vibrating function is useless to them.
The lack of pockets also means that if you have headphones attached to your phone and you're listening to music, you either hold it in your hand for the entire length of your commute, or you keep it in your handbag. Cue headphones twisting around your body.
Then there's make-up. Most women wear skin make-up, whether it's a tinted moisturiser, foundation or blusher. It means that after a phone call, you'll inevitably find a smattering of powder on your screen, which you have to awkwardly rub off on your clothes.
We have to talk about it
Women should talk about their issues with tech
'You don't want to bring it up,' cries Kindred - who admits she has grappled with these design oversights. 'You want to pretend you're not wearing any make-up. But talking about it will move it in the right direction. We also have to stop being embarrassed about our long hair.'
She thinks the only way we'll ever see true gender equality reflected in technology product designs is if companies like Apple have more women in their workforce. But until that happens, she says women need to talk about these issues. With the lack of men in tech companies, it's hard for them to be aware of these feminine problems. If we don't speak up about our struggles to hold our phones and get make-up off the screen, designers might not know these problems even exist.
Of course, this isn't true for all women. The drive to large screens and 'phablets' is driven by women, especially in China, because they can put them in their handbags. It just depends on what kind of user is picking up a smartphone, and whether it will physically suit their needs.
But Mariel Brown, an associate director at design and innovation company Seymourpowell, tells me that things are looking up as a whole: 'I think there's a change taking place but it's been quite slow moving. There's a move towards a more humanised exploration of technology. While it might not be present in the iPhone's physical features, some of the interfaces are starting to show more feminine characteristics.'
She explains that typically women want to see more simplicity rather than complexity in the designs of their products. It's something the iPhones do more and more - apart from the physical oversights, they are easy and efficient to use. It's why they're so popular.
Companies need to up their game
'For women the need is for things to feel kind of intuitive and delightful,' she says. 'We want to know how it's going to benefit our life. In the past, [tech companies] have focused on pixels and gigabytes of data, which are very functional and things that men might get excited about, but women less so. I think brands need to be speaking more in terms of benefits - not just features.'
Of course, in most cases, male and female technological needs are going to overlap. We want the best products available, and we all want 'delightful' user experiences. But for too long tech companies have relied on those gender similarities, and just focused on updating their software to win over customers.
Clearly that isn't enough. Women have different needs, and are also more likely than men to purchase tablets, laptops and smartphones, according to a 2012 report from Intel researcher Genevieve Bell. The same study also found any internet-connected devices, not to mention social networking sites, our mobiles and GPS more than our male counterparts.
It's about time tech companies started thinking about what we need - not just in terms of software, but practically too.
At the end of the day, no matter how many gigabytes or pixels by inch your smartphone has, it's pretty useless if it pulls out your hair - or you can't even hold it.
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