Some people still call the iPhone 11 series smartphones “ugly” despite the devices' apparent success in the market. Here's a quick look at why people think the iPhone 11 Pro and its siblings are the most unappealing models, as well as a quick glance at the “ugly” models performed based on sales.

Apple's latest iPhone models have been praised by people who know what they are talking about. Consumer Reports hailed the iPhone 11 Pro Max to be the best smartphone available to date; professional photographer Austin Mann considered the iPhone 11 Pro the best device for mobile photography; and others considered the iPhone 11 Pro series to be the best of its kind.

That said, some people still think the iPhone 11 series looks really ugly. TechCrunch's Devin Coldewey enumerates a few reasons why.

The notch

This feature that houses Apple's Face ID authentication method doesn't look nice. “If Apple’s engineers could figure out a way to have no notch, they’d have done it by now, but they can’t and I bet they are extremely frustrated by that,” Coldewey said.

“ They try to hide it with the special notch-camouflaging wallpaper whenever they can, which is as much as saying, 'hey, we hate looking at it too.'”

The camera bump

The iPhone 11 series, particularly the Pro models, might be housing Apple's best iPhone cameras yet, but they're “bump bad,” Coldewey said. The back of all three iPhone 11 models is a “broad plain” that has a “higher plateau” that houses “little camera volcanoes” that each has a “little calderas” for its lenses. There's also a “sunken well” for a microphone. Dirt sits easily in these areas.

The sides

Apple's iPhones lost the geometric simplicity of the older models, particularly the beauty of the iPhone SE. The iPhone 11 lineup has sides that “ look like bumpers from cheap model cars ” or “jelly beans,” both elongated and short.

Sales performance

Coldewey gave more reasons, but these are some of the few that users will quickly notice. Despite these and some other user-defined flaws, though, reports say Apple's iPhone 11 series models are doing pretty well when it comes to sales figures. They may not look stunning, but the sales figures are.

Chinese news site MyDrivers (via GizChina) reported that according to a recent survey conducted by UBS, the iPhone 11 series models have “outstanding” sales results in China, a country where Apple struggled for a time.

According to the survey, overall iPhone 11 series sales as of September 2019 increased by 230 percent year-on-year. This is attributed to a few factors, including price cuts and trade-in programs.

Apple's Kaiann Drance talks about the new iPhone 11 during a launch event on Apple's Cupertino, California campus
Apple's Kaiann Drance talks about the new iPhone 11 during a launch event on Apple's Cupertino, California campus GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / JUSTIN SULLIVAN