iPhone 5 to Use a 4-Inch Screen?

[TMay]

I'm sure Apple engineers are smart enough to make this work without MacHeads getting all worked up about resolution, scaling of apps etc.

In fact 4.3" is the Standard Size, even Samsung is enlarging their Galaxy S II from last years 4.0" to the current standard of 4.3". Therefore it would be appropriate for Apple to also migrate to 4.3".

Unfortunately I doubt Steve Jobs ego will allow it since it wasn't an Apple first trend.

As much as I really like my Apple devices, they could be even better if the sole focus of Jobs was to build the best products ever.

Instead he makes the claim Apple does, backing it up with near fraudulent claims & hype.

If Apple would relax, let go of their fear & paranoia of Google, Adobe, & anyone else that Jobs hates, Apples products _would_ be really awesome and even more profitable.

Look how much they are selling! Look at the massive profits! Just think of the potential if 100% of their focus was on doing their best, instead of sticking their nose in others business.

If Apple would drop the attitude, their products would really be world class.

You're new around here.

I've been here for a bit longer, and I can't tell how many times that I have read virtually the same prognostication you embrace right on these forums.

That would be a decade that I have been following Apple on the forums, and some 27 years since my first mac, a 128 in 1984. Since Steve Jobs return, Apple has been on a tear, literally redefining entire product classes, and that is pretty easy to verify what with the internet and all.

Bet you aren't aware that Android wasn't a creation of Google, but a purchase of technology, and that that technology was pretty much like every other "smart" phone at the time.

Apple shows up with the iPhone, which redefines the smartphone, and now it is the standard by which all other phones are compared. Back to the drawing board went Google with Android.

I would agree that one of the advantages of the Android (I'm not sure that I would call it a platform yet) is that each and every manufacturer can add features at any time, creating hundreds of variants, whereas Apple just added its second model (the Verizon phone) split into minor variants based on memory, into the current generation. From an engineering standpoint, Apple is constrained by its decision to market only a limited product line to a supply line that must provide 10's of millions of exactly the same part (an example being the display for the iPod Touch and iPhone, or the AX chip which also finds its way into Apple TV) and has yet to meet all of the demand. For that effort, Apple gets to negotiate that best pricing and availability, and is able provide funds for capacity creation. This is how Apple maximizes profit.

Apple is quite aware of the Android challenge, but I highly doubt that Apple has the inclination to vary its profits model to enter the race to the bottom that will surely occur with the Android business model (please note that Google has made only half hearted attempts at manufacturing, preferring to maintain its dominance in advertising revenue). So if Apple does response to market challenges from Android, it surely will be deliberate and carefully implemented, with the benefit of synergy with the entire Apple product line.

In conclusion, I haven't a clue if or when Apple will build variants of the current iPhone with a bigger 4.3 inch screen, but should it do so, it will be for the entire product line for many generations.

 

[mixel]

I'm happy with the screen size as it is now.. I wouldn’t mind it being a bit bigger but I've never felt it lacking as is..

Making the screen taller sounds good for watching movies etc.. I never really do that on mine though.

 

[SBlue1]

they would do this to fight what competition? nobody buys an android phone because of the bigger screen, they buy them because their carrier has no iphones or they simply cant afford one.

the rumors here are getting more and more silly every day. i cant wait to check macrumors tomorrow!

 

[franswa za]

Yes PLEASE.

x1000

 

[NightFox]

they would do this to fight what competition? nobody buys an android phone because of the bigger screen, they buy them because their carrier has no iphones or they simply cant afford one.

the rumors here are getting more and more silly every day. i cant wait to check macrumors tomorrow!

You really think Apple can afford to be complacent?

 

[CplBadboy]

The iPhone's screen size is perfect. If it's just a bit larger, you couldn't touch the whole screen with your thumb. I had an android 4" Phone in my hand once and it was really annoying that I had to use my second hand or strain the other one in order to reach every corner of the screen.

It's not steves Ego. It's steve's ability to think forward and know what people really want.

Really? Why do sheeple have to rely on the likes of SJ to decide for them what they want? I want a 4" screen. For me the current screen is too small. I'LL decide if its right for me. Not SJ.

 

[franswa za]

don't you think it's odd to have those random rumors appear in short term of time? APPLE MUST BE BEHIND THIS MADNESS!

LOL

and all this publicity does not cost apple anything! and the timing!

 

[Nobita]

Like many other people thought in this thread, I do think that this is a controlled leak as well. As is the slide out keyboard iPhone.

 

[nedz06]

Next iPhone 5:

It will have a 4 inch screen, however, it will magically feel smaller in your hand. It will also feel lighter because there would be no on board memory even with the slide out keyboard.

Can't wait!

Yeah! Nice assumptions, but i guess there's a lot of improvements from iPhone 4..

 

[nedz06]

Next iPhone 5:

It will have a 4 inch screen, however, it will magically feel smaller in your hand. It will also feel lighter because there would be no on board memory even with the slide out keyboard.

Can't wait!

Yeah! Nice assumptions, but i guess there's a lot of improvements from iPhone 4..

Edit.. Double post.. Sorry.! Don't know how to delete..

 

[sk58781111]

i wish apple would go all-in and make the iphone5 with a 4.3" retina screen . i love the kindle app for mobile and reading on my friends htc (4.3") was a revelation! it seem much more than just .8" difference. anyone smart out there can calculate how much more surface size it is in %?...show a mockup? (i suck at maths )

thanks in advance

 

[Thex1138]

Uh, I did.. it's mocked up there.. It works without increasing the size of the phone at all. I didn't do it the MOST EXACT PRECISE way, but that mock up is extremely close to what a 4in screen would look like slapped on the iPhone4.

Sorry kid but you're wrong.
Retaining the current WIDTH of both the phone and the screen but extending the diagonal length to 4 inches extends the screen to just short of the bottom of the existing home button. AKA changing the aspect ratio.
What you have done is... Yes depicted your version of a 4 inch screen yet retained the aspect ratio and the home button.

What I explained an don't appear to grasp is modifying the aspect ratio via the 4 inch screen. Inside the existing form factor. The extended screen length would then impede and replace the home button.

You have not depicted as what I conjectured on this mythical device either... So be cool bro and chill.

 

[corinna]

coincidence of rumors

Combining the recent edge-to-edge rumor, I think we could see an iPhone 5 with a 4" screen (33% larger than the 3.5" screen by my math) and a smaller bezel.

It'll probably have the same cameras though. Apple is so chintzy when it comes to its cameras.

 

[ovrlrd]

Sorry kid but you're wrong.
Retaining the current WIDTH of both the phone and the screen but extending the diagonal length to 4 inches extends the screen to just short of the bottom of the existing home button. AKA changing the aspect ratio.
What you have done is... Yes depicted your version of a 4 inch screen yet retained the aspect ratio and the home button.

What I explained an don't appear to grasp is modifying the aspect ratio via the 4 inch screen. Inside the existing form factor. The extended screen length would then impede and replace the home button.

You have not depicted as what I conjectured on this mythical device either... So be cool bro and chill.

The one thing I can bet big money on is that Apple is not going to change the aspect ratio of the iPhone or the iPad at this point. It is actually one of the most reliable factors for developers who are looking to make apps. The second you change that, you severely break compatibility.

This isn't a case of like the iPad where you could just hit the 2x button on iPhone apps (which turns out isn't very elegant anyway because the ratios are different as well). The apps really do have to be completely redesigned for a different aspect ratio. Certain apps would also just never get updated because of the amount of work involved.

Just imagine the countless number of games that have been made, and the developer has moved onto other apps because it's the only way to make money. Sadly that is how iOS development works for the majority of developers.

Apple would not risk breaking the huge app store they have available. That is why they were very careful when they did the Retina Display to make it exactly 2x the old iPhone resolution, so that the transition for developers would be pretty easy.

That said, there are still tons of apps that don't have Retina Display support and simply never will. But at least those apps don't look horrible and have weird black bars on the sides or something like that.

So actually mJay's mockups are pretty close to what it would look like. Granted it's just a mockup and it's extremely likely it will look very different, but he nailed the screen size part of the comparison pretty well at least.

 

[Padraig]

Having used a few phones with larger screens, I have to say that 4.0 inches really is the sweet spot in terms of user experience and pocket friendliness. As beautiful as the current screen is, it's size is somewhat lacking for a high end device in 2011.

 

[Popeye206]

Bigger screen would be fine as long as the phone is no bigger. I don't like the feel of the larger phones. The iPhone is a good usable size as it is. I'd be happy if the size didn't change at all.

 

[sk58781111]

Killing myself laughing over here at the suggestion to name it the iPhone 4i.

awesome name would be "iPhone 5 UltraMax XL ELB"

("Ultra XL" for 4.3" retina display. "Max ELB" for maximum, extended-life battery given the more battery they will be able to squeeze into a bigger phone

 

[AtariMac]

I personally like the current 3.5" screen. I have some Android using friends that have 4" screens and they feel unwieldy. Maybe I have small hands or something, but I find these larger phones difficult to handle and they do not fit well in pockets.

I have no idea whether or not the rumor is true or not, but if I had my vote I'd leave the physical size the same.

 

[Neodym]

Am I the only one that thinks that MASSIVE chunk of solid black above and below the screen looks really ugly?

No - see my post directly above yours

People need to remember that the bottom 1.5" of the current iPhone isn't just there to house the Home button - there's actually stuff underneath that! There seems to be this idea that if you got rid of the button you could simply lose the bottom part of the phone. Same goes for the top part - it's not just there as a holder for the speaker and front camera!

There is already stuff underneath the screen in today's iPhones - why not in a future revision with extended screen? The biggest "problem" are the components with external "interaction" (home button, speaker & sensors). And as technology improves, Apple might need less space in a future revision...

 

[sk58781111]

bigger screen makes routine tasks much more plesant, browsing the web, reading ebooks, watching videos, playing games, everything looks much nicer on a bigger screen.

If Apple cuts down on the amount of room the bezel takes, the screen could be made 4 inches without making the phone any bigger. People get turned off by the size of some Android phones. But that's only because Andriod phones are often poorly designed, have a ton of extranous space for logos and unneeded buttons, waste a ton of space and are generally way bigger and thicker than they need to be.

The advantages of a 4 inch screen are numerous. Typing, websites, ebooks, emails, videos, games would all look and be much easier to use with a 4 inch screen. The iPhone, once cutting edge, currently has the smallest screen of any popular smartphone. I suggest playing around with smartphones with 4 inch screens to see just how much more pleasant a bigger screen can make browsing, book reading, gaming and video playback.

"From my experience, it's far easier to use the on screen keyboard, browse online, read pdfs, emails and e-books, and watch movies with an extra inch of diagonal real estate. Everything just looks nicer, especially games, websites read easier when the text isn't quite so tiny, and movies feel more immersive. It's shocking how big a difference..." -iPhonedHome

Here is a picture of a mock iPhone that maintains the same identical height as the iPhone 4 (it is wider though) while managing to pack a whopping 4.5" screen...

The current home button is starting to look a little stale

It's not only tech geeks that enjoy watching videos on the iPhone, browsing the web on the iPhone, reading ebooks on the iPhone, reading maps on the iPhone, looking at and showing off pics on the iPhone, all tasks that are made substantially easier with a bigger screen. I am willing to bet that a general sample of all iPhone owners would show similar stats, with most wanting a bigger screen that makes these tasks easier and more pleasent.

perfect iphone and awesome post

 

[Themaeds]

Im all for it, and I love big screens on phones (droid x 4.3" screen ) but this shows that steve jobs is kind of a douche. Anyone remember him saying "who would want those giant android phones anyway?"..

It def is a perk

 

[GoldenPRGuy]

Hahahaha

Who comes up with these. Is there money in it? Cause I could do a lot better than this one. This is complete crap.

 

[spazzcat]

Great so now the battery can die in 5 hours like my brothers EVO. Cell phones don't need 4"+ screens....

 

[iRase]

Doubt it as well , but it defenitly would be nice.

 

[ipodtouch4]

iPhone 5 or iPad 2

I think apple will either go for a 4 inch iphone or a 7 inch ipad but not both as it will cause a collision between a streamlined company