How much does a smartphone weigh?

Our bench weighed a smartphone at 232 grams, but that figure includes its case. Strip the case away and the same phone drops to roughly 180 grams; add a bulky protective case instead and the total climbs past 290 grams. The case, more than the phone inside it, is what moves that number.

Case weight varies about as much as the phone itself: a thin silicone or clear case adds 15 to 25 grams, an ordinary moulded case of the kind most people use around 50, and a rugged case built for drop protection — thick polycarbonate, sometimes with a built-in kickstand — can add 60 grams or more. A phone's own bare weight also spans a wide range with screen size, from around 150 grams for a compact model to well over 220 grams for a large one, so the case is not the only variable — just the one most likely to be forgotten when this figure is compared against a reading fresh off a reader's own scale.