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Ahead of iPhone 6 Launch, One-Third of Smartphones Sold Have Screens Larger Than 5"

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Apr 12, 2001
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With the next iPhone widely expected to be available in larger screen sizes, Canalys reports that a third of all smartphones sold worldwide in the first quarter had screen sizes larger than five inches, a full inch larger than Apple's 4" iPhone 5s screen. The five-inch market -- some 90 million units in the quarter -- was the fastest growing portion of the smartphone market in the first quarter.

Internal documents released during the Apple v. Samsung trial show how Apple has been aware of consumer interest in larger screened smartphones for quite some time, and the iPhone 6 is expected to have 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch options to compete in this market.

canalysscreensize.png
Smart phones with 5" and larger screens grew 369% - a substantially greater rate of growth than the overall market. Worldwide, they represented just over a third of shipments (34%), and in Greater China the figure hit 39%, and 43% in Asia Pacific.

"This is still a market segment led by Samsung, but the trend is unmistakably toward larger-screen handsets at the high end of the market. It held a 44% share of devices with displays of 5" and above, and 53% if the view is narrowed to look at 5.5"-plus displays," said Canalys Analyst Jessica Kwee.

[...]

Consumers now expect high-end devices to have large displays, and Apple's absence in this market will clearly not last long. It is notable that 5" and above displays featured on almost half (47%) of smart phones with an unlocked retail price of US$500 or more. Of the remaining 53% of high-end smart phones, 87% were iPhones.
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Only 12 percent of smartphones sold had screens of 5.5-inches or larger, with 22% between 5 and 5.4-inches and the rest smaller than 5-inches, including all iPhones.

The iPhone 6 is widely expected to be launched this fall with a a 4.7-inch option, perhaps at 1704x960 pixels, and a larger 5.5-inch version that may launch later due to supply constraints.

Article Link: Ahead of iPhone 6 Launch, One-Third of Smartphones Sold Have Screens Larger Than 5"
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/05/14/smartphone-five-inch-totals/
dejo

dejo

Moderator emeritus
Sep 2, 2004
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Headline could easily be restated as:

"Ahead of iPhone 6 Launch, Two-Thirds of Smartphones Sold Have Screens Smaller Than 5"

Takes on a very different tact then, huh? :)
 
P

proline

macrumors 6502a
Nov 18, 2012
630
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dejo said:
Headline could easily be restated as:

"Ahead of iPhone 6 Launch, Two-Thirds of Smartphones Sold Have Screens Smaller Than 5"

Takes on a very different tact then, huh? :)
Click to expand...

Correct. Mega-phones are a small portion of the market. Big enough for Apple to go after, but certainly not deserving of 3+ years of endless media attention. Most people want their portable devices compact.
 
B

buckers

macrumors 6502
Aug 18, 2010
293
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Anglesey, UK
I personally prefer phones with screen sizes between 3.5 and 4 inch screens because I have smaller hands. But I always find myself looking at lower-quality handsets because the flagship models are always "large". Each to their own, I guess.
 
Supacon

Supacon

macrumors regular
Jul 7, 2011
104
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Canada
What a stupid chart. It doesn't even break up screen sizes smaller than 5". It would have been interesting to see the breakdown of Smaller than 3.5", 3.5", 4.0", 4-5", etc.
 
Killerbob

Killerbob

macrumors 68000
Jan 25, 2008
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I just hope there will be options with the iPhone 6... I am perfectly happy with the 5s, and nothing will make me go to a bigger size. I think the people with their huge phones/mini tablets look stupid, and they are impossible to carry around and still look professional. If there is not, I either will not upgrade, or switch to another manufacturer.
 
Dimwhit

Dimwhit

macrumors 68020
Apr 10, 2007
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The mind shutters at the thought of what Apple is going to charge for the larger iPhones.
 
D

DTphonehome

macrumors 68000
Apr 4, 2003
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Would it have been so terrible for Apple to release iPhones in multiple screen sizes? This trend isn't that new, they should have seen this coming. Now they look like they're reacting to the market (which they are) instead of anticipating where it would go and being ready with a product.
 
L

LachlanH

macrumors regular
Oct 5, 2011
158
7
It seems like most people would buy the 4.7 inch version. I however, must be in the minority as I am looking forward to upgrading my iPhone 5 to a 5.5" iPhone 6. :)


Also 1/3 larger than 5" is a huge area for Apple to expand into. Expect Apple's 2014 revenue to be record breaking.
 
bushido

bushido

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DTphonehome said:
Would it have been so terrible for Apple to release iPhones in multiple screen sizes? This trend isn't that new, they should have seen this coming. Now they look like they're reacting to the market (which they are) instead of anticipating where it would go and being ready with a product.
Click to expand...

havent u heard, its not about "being first but taking the time to do it right" at least thats what apples marleting says
 
Jack97

Jack97

macrumors regular
Nov 30, 2010
143
1
Things could get a bit awkward if someone took that chart out of context :p
 
thepro8

thepro8

macrumors member
Aug 30, 2009
80
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attila said:
I remember when this was cool

Image
Click to expand...

Still one of my favorite all time phones, Just wish it had better rf perforamce

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It would be really nice to see how much of the 66% is the iphone. That would tell you how much it is skewing the results...I bet a lot.
 
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