Mockups of a 4.94-Inch 'iPhone Plus' Show Why a Larger iPhone Might Make Sense

[manu chao]

Originally Posted by Anti-Lucifer

Let's do the following:

1) make an iphone with a competing LARGER SCREEN such as 5" keeping the high ppi

And let 99% of all apps run with a black border around them for the first couple of months. Out of the 26 third-party apps on my first two screens, four still have a black bar below and on top, close to five months after the iPhone 5 announcement.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by shurcooL

How's it an exception? It has a bigger screen where you can fit more stuff.

It most certainly cannot "fit more stuff". Both have the same 1280x720 resolution.

No, it's not a standard for phones. It's a standard for TVs, yes. PC laptops, yes. Mac laptops, no. iPad, no. Phones, no.

Having a bad day? It sure feels like you are looking for a fight instead of a productive discussion.

I said that it was becoming a standard, and that is true. Most smart phones are 16:9 HD resolution now, and the next big thing is 1080p.

Regarding all the other devices you brought up, I was referring only to PC monitors, as I said.

[srathi]

Samsung innovates and Apple copies, once again.

[manu chao]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

Mostly agree. One exception is the Galaxy Note. Samsung has somehow convinced a number of people that they should pay a little more than what a Galaxy costs for slightly larger pixels (and larger device). I don't get it (and yes I know the note offers other gimmicks too, like a stylus).

Not everybody has perfect eyesight and the larger touch targets help some people as well.

[Padraig]

Apple is trapped by their iphone Retina displays. When the 4 came out, the screen was outstanding. It blew everything else away. It made my 3GS look like junk and I knew I had to have one. That display - stretched as it now is - is still pretty damn good - no longer best around, but very respectable. But it's Apples insistance in retaining that resolution thats going to hurt them. If they create a larger phone the ppi is really going to suffer especially as everyone seems to be bringing out 440+ ppi.

[StickerBox]

No no no no no no no!

This is the kind of **** that ****ed Apple when Steve left all those years ago - trying to be the biggest over the being the best. It doesn't make sense. Maybe for people who buy into the whole "bigger screen = better phone" ****, but why would you go after a market of idiots?

McDonalds sell the most burgers in the world. Does that mean their burgers are the best? **** no.

The hardware is brilliant. Fix the bloody software. Then add some awesome additions to the hardware, not some cheap, lame-ass, unimaginative bollocks like a bigger screen that's only going to piss off developers.

[CEmajr]

Originally Posted by Dagless

Is there a race to making the biggest display for a phone? Personally I wouldn't want anything bigger than an iPhone 4S. That's why I'm sticking with it.

Yes because these days the larger your screen the more "innovative" your phone is.

[smooth]

I think a larger iPhone would be a pretty popular device. If I didn't use iCloud so much between my devices, I would have gotten a Note instead of the iPhone 5 when I upgraded. I am out more than I am home, but having my iPad with me is just not feasible. So my iPhone gets alot of use. More screen real estate would be awesome. And someone mentioned it earlier, but don't try beefing up the internals, but instead fill the space with a larger battery.

For those who have constant access to computers or tablets all day probably won't have in interest in a larger iPhone, but I think there are many like me whose iPhones (or other phones similar in size) have become a "phablet" long before that term was coined.

[ChrisH3677]

Originally Posted by shurcooL

Larger screens are popular PRECISELY because you can fit more information and content there. Not because of larger pixels.

This would be so useless.

Image

Maybe for some folks, but large screens are popular because they are easier to read because everything is scaled up.

Also, movies and photos look great on them and the keyboard keys are bigger (no need to file your finger tips)

We don't want larger screens so Apple can cram more stuff on them.

I've got a Note II and would buy a large iPhone in a flash if Apple did it. Have even written to Apple about that. I bet I'm not the only one.

Steve once famously said, "Who'd want a 7-inch iPad? You'd have to file your fingers down to use it."

Incredibly no one called him out on the fact that the iPhone screen was half that size which therefore implies you'd need to file your fingers down a LOT to use its tiny keyboard.

PS Don't even begin to tell me that iPhones allow scaling the text up for accessibility. It doesn't work for all text, mainly just Apple things like email and SMS. You end up with a disjointed ugly experience.

Bring on the iPhone Plus! I can't wait.

[MegaSmack]

Originally Posted by mcfrazieriv

Because it isn't a waste of time to stop and wonder why people would take time to do what has historically not worked in the past? Apple nearly died when they decided that innovation wasn't as important as providing choice. Remember the early 90's when there were so many Apple models that had only one or two differences and how each of these models clouded/confused the customer?

Remember in the early 2000's when they made tons of different choices of iPod and they dominated the market?

I agree, they need to continue to innovate (more so now than ever), but I don't think adding a bigger phone is going to confuse people. What's the difference between these two phone? One has a bigger screen. So you buy the screen you want. Certainly seems easier than explaining the differences between a Galaxy S III and a Galaxy Note II.

[kas23]

I don't see this selling well amongst current iPhone owners, especially those with current iPhone-sized accessories, especially those who just replaced them recently due to the Lightening connector. In fact, this would piss off the accessory makers too.

As for people new to the iPhone, this size sounds good to me. Can't say I like 264 ppi though. People tend to read their iPhones close to their face. I would have to see it first.

[Ploki]

Originally Posted by HishamAkhtar

Why don't they make the new iPhone with the retina iPad's resolution on a 5 inch screen?

2048 x 1536 resolution with a 512 PPI would be sick.

a) GUI scaling would fall apart.(too small elements)
b) screen real-estate would diminish.(to 2xHiDPI, octupling pixels)

[JarScott]

I seriously doubt Apple will go any bigger than 4" for a while. They don't strike me as a company which is particularly concerned with providing choice or keeping up with trends. After being so vocal about how 4" is the "perfect size" I can't see them contradicting themselves with a bigger device. I don't think we should expect too much out of iPhone in 2013. iPhone 5S with updated internals is a given, a cheaper alternative also? Maybe.

[smulji]

Originally Posted by commander.data

Or they could just go 1280x720 on a 4.5" display. Shrinking the bezel slightly it won't have to be significantly larger than the iPhone 5, may still be one-handed usable for many people, keeps the same 326 dpi so UI guidelines are unchanged and existing Retina iPhone wafers can continue to be used just cut larger and gives them the "HD" moniker while also providing more usable screen space which simply keeping the same resolution and scaling up doesn't do.

Beat me to it. I agree completely.

[Karma*Police]

Originally Posted by Blackberryroid

This is just to catch up with the competition. It better have something new and exciting, not just spec bumps.

But it wouldn't really be a spec bump. It'd be like a cheap parlor trick to capture the market of people who are wowed by big screens and emerging markets. The resolution would be the same so there wouldn't be any benefits except for the geriatric crowd... It'd be less portable, difficult to operate with one hand and screen sharpness would suffer as a result of the lower ppi.

It doesn't sound like the Apple way, but there is a huge market that can't afford a smartphone and tablet, and that's where something like this might make sense. In fact, if they decided to go with cheaper materials like plastic, it'd be cheaper to build and easier to engineer and manufacture than trying to cram the latest tech into something the size of iPhone 5. Miniaturization is hard!

[TheHateMachine]

Originally Posted by Hurst

Does anyone really think Apple is going to react to the competition? Since when have they done that. I've been using Apple products since 1986.

Yes you will see a larger phone. But that's not reactive, its part of their product roadmap.

So will larger iPad formats for wall mounted touch screens in the kitchen. Before you get your larger screen formats for the living room.

iPad Mini and the iPhone 5's bigger screen.

Product roadmap? They have been using the same size screen on the iPhone for how long now, and it only changed recently after the explosion of screen sizes from competitors.

[FirePhantom]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

There is positively no chance in hell Apple will shoot their Retina initiative in head by introducing a 264 PPI phone. None. Sub 5" 1080p phones are coming soon and from a number of manufacturers. I don't know what pixel density that works out to, but it is higher than the current iPhone by a good margin. You don't answer that with a new phone with giant pixels by comparison. That's backward progress, and will get the device panned.

If we get a larger screen option, PPI is going up or at the very least staying the same.

A 1080x1920 display at 5″ works out to 441 PPI, 4.94″ (as mentioned in the article) would be 446 PPI, 4.5″ would be 490 PPI, and 4″ would be a stunning 551 PPI. It would truly live up to the Retina name.

I couldn't agree with you more, by the way.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by manu chao

You mean there is no chance that Apple would introduce an iPad mini without a Retina display?

Nope, that's really not what I meant at all.

Apple might choose to offer an entry level iPhone with a smaller screen and non-Retina display if they saw a market. But they absolutely won't create a new flagship iPhone with lesser features than the existing one which would sit below it.

And similarly, no, we won't see an 11" iPad with sh@t resolution either. Oh, but an 11" iPad is senseless anyway perhaps you say? Not once the upcoming bezel shrink arrives. Then you can just about pack such a screen into the current iPad's form factor. I am not saying Apple will do it. But someone will, and if it sells then others will surely follow.

[NakedPaulToast]

Originally Posted by manu chao

Not everybody has perfect eyesight and the larger touch targets help some people as well.

This.

I'm in the age range where my short vision is just not clear. My distance vision is terrific. Given the choice of carrying reading glasses or getting a bigger screen, the obvious choice is a bigger screen.

Presbyopia happens to everyone, smaller screens are a problem, If apple wants to appeal to an aging population then they need to increase the readability of their screens.

[Pakaku]

But Steve Jobs said it's WRONG

And Steve Jobs is never wrong. Never.

[ChrisH3677]

Originally Posted by StickerBox

No no no no no no no!

This is the kind of **** that ****ed Apple when Steve left all those years ago - trying to be the biggest over the being the best. It doesn't make sense.

So you'd prefer the smallest over the best?

Steve introduced the 17" PowerBook which evolved into the 17" MBP. Those lineups lasted many years. Interestingly, it was the smaller 12" PowerBook that EOLed first.

What Steve was into was families of products. 2 or 3 in each family. Not dozens like the numpties at other companies, just 2 or 3 of the best in their class.

If Steve and Apple listened to folks like yourself, who can only see their own requirements, there'd be one size iPhone, one size iPod, one size MacBook (no MBA or MBP mind you), one size iMac.

Apple already has two sizes of iPhone. Once the Plus comes out, they will phase out the smaller 4S and again have two sizes. And that's overkill because?

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by manu chao

Not everybody has perfect eyesight and the larger touch targets help some people as well.

You're right - not everyone has perfect eyesight.

But everyone with the necessary faculties to use a smartphone has the ability to move the phone closer or nearer there eye to make pixels whatever size they want them.

[Schmitty11]

Here come the die hard "take my money" fanboys. I was hoped the next iPhone was made out of helium

[Kolmogorov]

Originally Posted by Anti-Lucifer

it doesn't matter how much resolution you can pack into a 4" screen because my current iphone 5 is NOT USED as a web browser, image viewer, nor is it used for anything but making phone calls and texting these days. I have an ipad 4 for everything else multimedia.

It's so pathetic, the fonts are so small and the screen being so narrow and safari being too dumb to know how to resize fonts with overflowing formatting, it's quite sad this is my case.

I am looking forward to a 5" samsung Galaxy s4 because not only is the iPhone hardware meh at best, the iOS software is really not improving much at all. I use to feel the ecosystem was there but now competition has caught up.

On iPhone we should use apps, which are suitable for portrait viewing. On iPad we then may use the real web pages designed for desktops. This is how I understand the situation.

[Premium1]

I honestly can't see them sticking with that resolution if they do go larger than 4". I mean you know apple is going to want to keep their phone retina and not sink down to under 300PPI. I think they would change the resolution as well.