“Apple Inc. may have led the world with the modern smartphone but it’s long played catch-up on screen size. That’s allowed Samsung Electronics Co. and Chinese brands to corner the market for super-sized devices,” Robert Fenner writes for Bloomberg. “The U.S. company is now said to be preparing a renewed bid to capture ground with the release of a trio of iPhones — including one that’s almost twice the size of the original model. It’s a move that’s aimed in part at emerging markets such as India and China.”
“The largest of the new designs has a screen that’s close to 6.5 inches (16.5 centimeters) when measured diagonally. That would make it among the biggest on the market,” Fenner writes. “By comparison, the first iPhones came with a 3.5-inch display, a dimension that Apple saw as optimal for using with one hand until the 4-inch iPhone 5 appeared in 2012. The new range also includes a device that, at 5.8 inches, is said to be the same size as Apple’s premium iPhone X.”
“If Apple succeeds in winning people over to a giant iPhone, that will raise questions about products such as the iPad Mini,” Fenner writes. “Why buy a 7.9-inch tablet if you have a 6.5-inch smartphone which does many of the same things?”
Read more in the full article here.
SEE ALSO:
Apple’s 6.5-inch ‘iPhone X Plus’ display, with notch, shown in leaked photo – February 26, 2018
3 exclusive features Apple could deliver with a 6.5-inch ‘iPhone X Plus’ – February 20, 2018
2 ways Apple can improve upon the beautiful iPhone X – February 15, 2018
Not quite doom.
Because there are quite many men and perhaps a bit fewer women) who want to be able to put their phone in their pocket (jeans, pants, jacket, shirt). And SE is the only reasonably small phone that comfortably fits into those.
And a person who has a SE-sized device wouldn’t mind having an iPad mini at home for things that require an iPad-sized devices.
Although I’m personally a much bigger fan of a standard-sized iPad (9.7″ or 10.5″) device, with plenty more screen real estate without sacrificing much of portability and weight.
I believe iPads are on the way out. If true, Too bad cause I really like the form factor of my mini. What I don’t like is the speed. Wishful thinking and will probably never happen, but wish they would update the minis internals.
CPU Geekbench for iPhone X (multicore) = 10,096
CPU Geekbench for iPad mini 4 (multicore) = 2881
Jeez…….
I would love to see an LTE iPad mini with all the current CPU/GPU/Display that could be used as a Phone. I would trade my iPhone 7 for it yesterday.
On a recent flight a guy sitting across diagonally in front of me was watching a movie on what looked like a large Samsung phone (with wireless earphones). I couldn’t make out what the movie was but from time to time he would pick up the phone and hold it closer to his face apparently to more clearly see some smaller details. I said to myself: “Gee, it’s too bad that he doesn’t have a tablet or a laptop to make his viewing easier on his eyes.” IMHO, large phones are best for still photos but NOT extended video presentations. It would be interesting to know just how many tablets are purchased with just wi-fi vs. how many have mobile calling capability. If Apple does come out with a very large iPhone then Samsung is going to have to dance faster.
WRONG WRONG WRONG!!! Just another mis-step of Pipeline Tim. Just when you think putting servers for iCloud in China was a bad idea, missing product cycles and new releases for the past 4 holiday season, here comes ANOTHER CLUELESS DECISION. Do you know how many people want a phone to put in their pocket? The SMALLER size is too important to neglect. Not only myself, but numerous people I know purchased the larger phones. Hated them, and went out and purchases a SE just because I would rather have a smaller phone that the newest technology. To not offer the the 4″ for new products is really stupid. The day Tim Cook retires (or gets voted out by the board) is the best day ever.
There will always be small as well as larger iPhones. I think Tim knows what he’s doing, not sure you know what’s happening, though. You’re critiquing non-issues.
“WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!”
Pretty emphatic with your business wisdom there. If only Apple could have you as their CEO. Maybe they could grow to be the biggest company on the planet. Oh – wait…
I’d suggest calming down with some Valium, using words like “I think” and “in my opinion”, and backing up your ideas with logic rather than mere declarations of hatred and name-calling.
Your ACTUAL point would lose nothing by doing so.
Larger phones will not replace the MacMini except for people what prefer to carry around a LARGE phone.
I prefer a smaller phone, the X is fine because it easily fits in my pocket. However, I just bought my second iPadMini because I will use it to take Square payments in the back of seminars. That is it’s dedicated function.
My first iPadMini2 is used as a reader around the house. It’s also the screen for the controller of my DJI Mavic Pro.
I have an iPad Air, and 7 mac computers that I use. Each one is optimized and perfect in size and power for the function it serves.
For example:
A MacMini is integrated into the home theater.
A MacPro is for Video Editing.
The Mac Pro would be overkill for the theater and the MacMini wouldn’t cut it as a vide editing station.
A 2015 MacBook Pro 15″ is my main squeeze for business and personal computing.
There is an iMac dedicated to the business admin and accounting in our home office.
I have a MacMni as a “test pilot”. It has no business function, so when a new operating system comes out I can go “Yeehaa!” and not have to worry if it doesn’t work out.
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro 15″ partitioned and running legacy systems. I just saved a friends bacon with that one.
The “Will one replace the other” discussion is personal, not general and it comes down to what you want to do with a device. if someone is only going to have one device then they will choose the one that covers the most primary bases, even if the secondary bases are not optimum. So for some people larger phones may replace a Mini. For others no way.
One size does not fit all.