It took me a long, long time to get used to having an expensive device on me that is bulky, fragile, not waterproof (includes iPhones after you drop it once), requires daily charging, and not durable in general (due to battery or sabotage by update). Jewelry is more expensive but has none of these issues.
They are certainly very useful, but I don’t think the current standard is the best compromise.
FWIW dropped my iPhone 12+ several times (a recurring occurrence with some pants I use when I put the phone in the front pocket and sit on my office chair). So far, I can still wash it and even use it in the pool with the kids.
I bought iPhone 11 when it came out, never wear a case and dropped it numerous times. It still works fine, with the original screen intact(not counting some scratches).
It survived even flying from an e-scooter after I’ve hit a bump on 15 km/h and sliding couple meters on asphalt afterwards.
And after all that it still had no problem when I dived into the pool with it and shot how I’m riding on a water slide.
Maybe I’m just lucky but it feels like you are exaggerating iPhone fragility. They’ve improved a lot recently.
Perhaps we were unlucky. Fyi: the standard iPhone warranty does not cover water damage (and it was just a spill, not submerged). Found out the hard way.
They are certainly very useful, but I don’t think the current standard is the best compromise.