Micro USB is a huge step up from Mini at least. They're tiny because people demand they be tiny (perhaps indirectly by demanding razor thin phones.

Mini is only rated something like 1000 to 5000 insertion cycles. Micro is rated at 10,000. The tiny size does make them prone to damage by clumsy users, but there's not much to be done about that. They made the right decision by making the male end flimsy rather than making it sturdy so the connector inside the device might break instead. Easier to replace the cable than the socket. Also they put the retention springs on the cable in micro rather than in the socket like the mini, so when they wear out, you just buy a new cable, not a new phone.

I really don't have any trouble inserting USB cables. Hell of a lot less than I do most other connector types anyway.