4"+ smartphones -- the market has spoken (and it says yes) (1 Viewer)

[Hanson]

Holy hell - if these rumored specs are true, Sony is going to make a big splash in the hero phone market:
www.androidguys.com/2012/12/14/sony-yuga-rumored-with-outlandish-3gb-ram-128gb-storage-16-megapixel-camera/?utm_source=feedburner
Makes me wonder if they're leaking this to force Samsung to one up them.

 

[KeithAP]

I am surprised we haven't seen a full fledged tablet (7" plus screen) with complete cell phone functionality. The idea being that it would always be used with a bluetooth headset. You could even have a bluetooth handset, similar to a standard flip phone, for use with such a device.

On another note (no pun intended), Engadget is reporting that LG Display will be showing, among other things, a 5.5" 1080P display at CES this year.

-Keith

 

[Hanson]

Actually the original Galaxy Tab had GSM voice capability in the European model. This functionality was removed by the US carriers.
One of the Huawei execs has been very openly showing off a 6.1" phone in public. There are pictures of it everywhere.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Maybe we'll get there yet. I certainly want something like that as I've said a few times before... although I'd probably also need a replaceable battery (for the tablet) all the more in that case -- I don't necessarily need the battery to be easy and very cheap to replace, but I hate to spend substantial $$$ on a tablet that can only last a year or two due to irreplaceable battery...
_Man_

 

[Sam Posten]

Evidence you may be right on the popularity front: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/07/us-phablets-idUSBRE9050CS20130107

 

[Hanson]

Really? I may be right?
Also, the title of this post is already outdated, because 5 is the new 4.
4" phones seem like quaint, olden days stuff now. 4.3" phones, which were once dubbed "Hummers", are now small.
Looks like 5" is the new standard for Android flagship phones. HTC already released their 5" DNA, Sony is coming out with the 5" Xperia Z, and all other Android manufacturers are announcing 5" phones. The Samsung Galaxy S4 is rumored to be 5" as well. All of these screens sport 1080p displays with 440ppi. These are phones, mind you, not "phablets" like the 5.5"Note 2.

 

[Sam Posten]

I'm sure you'll be first in line: http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/7/3847446/huawei-ascend-mate-announced

 

[Hanson]

I am was going to post that earlier with the comment, "is 6 already the new 5?"

 

[Sam Posten]

Like I said, where is there to go once the size race is over? What's the differentiator then?

 

[Hanson]

Practical stuff like Battery life and camera quality. Less important stuff like 4K video recording and 3D game performance. Right now, there are a lot of dual SIM phones being released in Asia because there's a part of the market that clamors for it. The size race was good for Android because there was no way Apple could compete because they were locked into their retina marketing and the OS did not support the kind of scaling Android does. They could make a 4.3" or 4.5" iPhone with a resolution of 1707 X 960 nowadays since 440ppi screens are going to be commonplace. I assume it will be 4.3" so the 455 ppi is higher than the 440ppi sported by the 5" 1080p phones. Somehow, whatever new marketing term Apple comes up with will magically cut off at 450 ppi.

 

[Sam Posten]

I wouldn't bet for or against that, but making that prediction continues to show how weird your view of Apple and Benchmarks is to me.... I honestly have no idea how you could come to that conclusion. Anyway, buyers are gonna need bigger cargo pants for this one: http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/8/3851422/panasonic-4k-tablet-windows-8-hands-on

 

[Hanson]

Originally Posted by Sam Posten
I wouldn't bet for or against that, but making that prediction continues to show how weird your view of Apple and Benchmarks is to me.... I honestly have no idea how you could come to that conclusion.

There were so many conclusions. I don't know which is the one that baffles you. Is it the one where the marketing team concludes that 450ppi is some sort of minimum for some magical display effect like 329ppi as "retina"? Or the way I picked 1707 X 960 as the resolution?

 

[Sam Posten]

"Somehow, whatever new marketing term Apple comes up with will magically cut off at 450 ppi."

 

[Hanson]

The 5" 1080p Android screens offer 440ppi. So if Apple comes out with a 455ppi screen, the marketing department will come up with some reason why 450ppi is a magical number and the Android screens are shit in comparison. Because of 10ppi. I have read articles where 319ppi was described as "almost Retina" due to marketing.

 

[DaveF]

Originally Posted by Hanson
I have read articles where 319ppi was described as "almost Retina" due to marketing.

Then you're reading bad journalism or bad marketing. That's not Apple's doing. It's not even what Apple advertised.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retina_Display
Quote:

[font="sans-serif; line-height: 19px; text-align: -webkit-auto; "]When introducing the [/font]iPhone 4[font="sans-serif; line-height: 19px; text-align: -webkit-auto; "], Steve Jobs said the magic number for a retina display is about 300 PPI for a device held 10 to 12 inches from the eye[/font][9][font="sans-serif; line-height: 19px; text-align: -webkit-auto; "].[/font]

 

[Sam Posten]

Journalists and bloggers, man.. Listening to the crazy ones will mess you up. Page views make people say stupid shit they dont believe...

 

[Sam Posten]

Humble is not the word I would choose but..,

And, indeed, there is something charmingly humble about Samsung’s see-what-sticks strategy. Other tech giants operate according to lofty philosophies. Apple prizes aesthetics and usability, Google cherishes the free flow of information, and Facebook wants to connect us all to one another. Samsung has no such philosophy. All it wants to do is make stuff that we’ll buy. This strategy is an admission that customers, not companies, know best. If pleasing customers means making phones that look exactly like your rivals’ devices, or making phones that are foolishly large, or making devices that run every conceivable operating system, or creating a fridge with a built-in baby monitor and an Evernote app (unveiled at CES this week)—well, then that’s what Samsung will do.

http://mobile.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2013/01/samsung_how_the_korean_firm_got_to_be_the_biggest_tech_company_in_the_world.html

 

[RobertR]

Humble is not the word I would choose but.., http://mobile.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2013/01/samsung_how_the_korean_firm_got_to_be_the_biggest_tech_company_in_the_world.html

I'd say such "humbleness" is definitely preferable to a Jobsian "I will decide what's best, and try to convince people they should like it" arrogance. No matter how much companies may try to think otherwise, in a market economy, the consumer really is sovereign.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Oh, if only Apple made phones people would want to buy...
http://news.yahoo.com/apple-cuts-lcd-panel-orders-iphone-5-weak-033840869--finance.html
Seems like many of us were right. If Apple doesn't start
making exciting phones that people don't have to squint at
to read or are operating system restrictive then they are going
to continue losing market share.
Oh..and finally...an article that compares the Galaxy Note II
to the Huawei Ascend Mate. Galaxy still comes out on top.

 

[Hanson]

It is true that Apple over-orders components based on anticipated demand and usually cuts their order at the beginning of the year. Last year, it was 10-15%. But 50%? Obviously, they're missing internal estimates by a mile.
In fact, I am still suspicious of the "2 million sold" in China during their launch weekend. They sold half that number the prior year with crushing demand and riots. This year, there were no lines, pre-orders stood around 400K, China's largest carrier wasn't involved, and they somehow sold 2 million units? I could believe that number shipped to carriers, but actually activated? Something does not smell right. Apple releases activated numbers and clearly pushes those. The China numbers were vague. Is Tim Cook now playing the "shipped to carriers = sold" numbers game now? Is Apple getting Sculleyed again?
BTW, the pre-fiscal cliff sell off period has come and gone (the excuse for the drop in share price). The stocks are still flat, barely north of 500. This is not going to help.