I've been told I have large hands and even I can't stand the 6, yet I know people with smallish hands who are happy. I think people's definitions of one handed use are different. On my 5, I can hold with one hand and get my thumb to touch the top of the screen along the whole top. No such luck with the 6, and with a case on, I suspect it would be worse. I'm also not interested in using reachablitly, which just makes everything more complex.
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Apple Appears to Have Ditched Plans for 4-Inch 'iPhone 6c' in 2015
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I've been told I have large hands and even I can't stand the 6, yet I know people with smallish hands who are happy. I think people's definitions of one handed use are different. On my 5, I can hold with one hand and get my thumb to touch the top of the screen along the whole top. No such luck with the 6, and with a case on, I suspect it would be worse. I'm also not interested in using reachablitly, which just makes everything more complex.
I have an iPhone 5 and it fits perfectly in my small hands. Even so, I have to admit bigger screens for handhelds are the future, so if the rumors are true it is a smart move by Apple.
People talking about Asian markets need to realize that East Asian consumers have been preferring big screens for a long time. The fad right now is to have all-in-one lifestyle apps, so screen 'real estate' is actually at a premium. The name of the game for Samsung and Xiaomi is bigger and faster: larger phones + lots of ram to handle the apps. Board any train in Seoul, Beijing, or Tokyo and you'll see what I mean.
Keeping 4" phones would be a step backward for a company that's trying to penetrate those markets.
People talking about Asian markets need to realize that East Asian consumers have been preferring big screens for a long time. The fad right now is to have all-in-one lifestyle apps, so screen 'real estate' is actually at a premium. The name of the game for Samsung and Xiaomi is bigger and faster: larger phones + lots of ram to handle the apps. Board any train in Seoul, Beijing, or Tokyo and you'll see what I mean.
Keeping 4" phones would be a step backward for a company that's trying to penetrate those markets.
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Good points, but I question when that particular tech website conducted that survey you read—before or after the iPhone 6/6+ launch? I think Apple also needs to allow current iPhone 5s customers a chance to upgrade to the larger iPhone 6s this fall, to at least generate a clearer picture of what all iPhone consumers truly want out of screen/phone size.
And keep this in mind; if a Touch Force screen on next year's iPhone 7 renders the home button obsolete, think of how much the next generation iPhone will shrink due to the reduced amount of total top and bottom bezel. Check out a preview, here:
http://www.imore.com/people-who-say-they-want-smaller-screens-really-want-smaller-iphones
4" is only a very small market of the phone business. Apple is right to stick with the bigger phones, slimming them down as time progresses.
Maybe they kept the iPod touch at 4" because that allowed it to be offered more cheaply (compared to a 4.7" display)?
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The title of the article states that Apple appears to have ditched plans for a 4" 6c phone and then the article states that Apple may not have ever had plans for such a device.
What we have here, is a nothing more than a poor excuse for an article. A rumored article about more rumors with a title that suggest that the rumors were valid.
Meaningless drivel.
Come on Macrumors staff. You can do much better than this.
What we have here, is a nothing more than a poor excuse for an article. A rumored article about more rumors with a title that suggest that the rumors were valid.
Meaningless drivel.
Come on Macrumors staff. You can do much better than this.
And what will be available at the $499 price point? Apple is currently selling iPhones at $450, $550, $650, and $750 (+ higher-priced versions with more storage). I don't think Apple will raise the minimum price of its iPhones from $450 to $599.
You also added $50 to the current price of the 4.7" and 5.x" iPhone, I don't think Apple will do this.
Why would a 4" iPhone with TouchID threaten the sales of the iPhone 6s (and 6s+), if the 4" iPhone 5s with TouchID has threatened the sales of the iPhone 6 and 6+?
My hands can handle the 6Plus just fine and I'm tiny. It's my pockets that are ripping at the seams! I'm so disappointed that there's no 4" screen phone on the horizon. I can't make do with an iPod touch because Skype and VoIP won't do me any good if my car breaks down on a back country road. my car is over two decades old so it doesn't have wifi, either.
Like I said in the threads about the IPad mini, I don't buy the smaller dimensioned devices because they are cheaper. I buy them because I need or prefer the smaller dimensions.
Apple cannibalizes their stuff all the time. Why would they hold back now? The argument by the analyst makes no sense.
You ARE evil, EvilEvil. Lol, that's fun to read aloud. It's the perfect size for some use case scenarios. I have phased out of most of them, though.
Plenty means 1 out of 100? Your stat doesn't mean anything against Apple stat. They know how many 4" devices sold.
Apple doesn't care. They killed many things people loved in the past to move on to new, better technology. It's a tradeoff...the same way they killed 30-pin connector, Magsafe connector, iPhone 5, iPad 3...and maybe next Thunderbolt
It's possible, but I think the differences of in economies of scale of the iPhone vs iPod would make the pricing difference minimal. It's also possible the smaller screen was kept to maintain separation from the much more expensive (without subsidies) iPhone 6. (Which is similar to my argument for why a 4" iPhone 6C makes sense)
You mean $50 increase for flagships? That's a dumb business move to just for fitting a 4" device into the price scheme.
There are already large iPhones. Keeping 4" phones would satisfy those of use who don't want phablets. Why are you against additional consumer choice?
Also, iPhone has 51% market share in Japan. That's more than every other smartphone maker else combined, so that's probably what you'll see on any train in Tokyo at least.
Well it would sell more because the 4 inch version would be cheaper. It's not the fact people want a smaller iPhone it's the fact it would be cheaper.
I've not heard one person complaining about the iPhone 6 size. It seems to be apple fanatics who can't adjust to change who want a 4 inch phone. If it was up to them the iPhone 6 would be 3.8 inches.
If iOS isn't a dealbreaker the Sony Z3 Compact, or whatever its successor will be in 2015, looks to be the only full-fledged flagship device in that form factor for you.
I'm holding off upgrading my phone this year until I see what the next "Compact" will bring.
Disagree.
1. Sales are not slowing.
2. Purchasing an iPhone is now widely seen as supporting the homelands jobs.
This fall is the beginning of when existing iPhone 5s and 5c owners will finish their 2 year contracts, and start looking to upgrade. So it's possible that the fraction of those who prefer 4" screens will drive demand for an upgraded 4" iPhone option. But, with Apple's 3 year rotation of iPhones (currently 6/5s/5c) the 5s will likely still be in the rotation this fall with the 6s / 6 / 5s. So, I don't think there will be an updated 4" option this year, but I do think it will happen next year, when the rotation will be: 7 / 6s / 6. The question then will be, will the new 4" option have the guts of 7, 6s or 6? That will depend on which new feature is the defining feature of the iPhone 7, if Apple needs that feature adopted broadly or not. Unless of course if ApplePay is currently a priority for Apple, then this year they could halt 5s production and give a 6c with ApplePay and some minor spec improvement, such as new LTE chipset.