4.6" screen for the iPhone 5?

BDD888 said:

Apple needs to take this opportunity with the upcoming iP5 to remain competitive in the smartphone market..

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The iPhone 5 is already out you know. iPhone (1), iPhone 3G (2), iPhone 3GS (3), iPhone 4 (4), iPhone 4S (5) which leaves the next iPhone to be the sixth!

To comment on the rumor, I am very satisfied with the display on my iPhone 4, and I would hate to carry a phone any larger than the current one around in my pocket.

Speaking as someone with one of those large-screened Android phones (DROID X), I think keeping the screen size relatively small is one of the better design decisions Apple has made with the iPhone. There's something to be said for being able to comfortably use your phone with one hand.

As a happy HTC EVO owner with a nice large screen, ( that works just fine in my pants pocket) and who wants to be a happy iPhone owner...a screen similar to the current iPhone model is a deal-breaker. I'll stay Andriod, and I really wanted to go Apple this time around.

BTW, any rumors on release date?

indychris said:

We obviously run in different circles as the majority of men I know keep their phones in their pant pockets. Of course OUR pants have front pockets which apparently your must not (or you frequently sit in VERY awkward positions!).

I've been carrying my phone in my front pocket since before the original iPhone came out. Never had a single issue with placing it there. Maybe you need to find an alternative to skinny jeans.

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Ha! Love this post. I too carry my phone in my front pocket. And thank god skinny jeans are not that popular. Can't get into them myself. Plus, they are uncomfortable - for certain reasons.

But getting back to a bigger iPhone - I just don't want a huge monster to carry around. Upping the screen to 4in. would be just fine. Any thing bigger would be too much. My iPhone 3GS is big enough.

I wouldn't mind if the screen was just a little bigger. Maybe half inch higher, and a wee bit wider. Just a little bit would make all the difference. But not as big as some of the android phones I've seen.

Doug b said:

I'm betting on a 4" AMOLED Gorilla Glass LCD. 4" wouldn't be too much of a compromise between useability and size. You also have to consider that if Apple decides to put a quad core graphics processor in the iPhone, it will also need a newer, and likely bigger battery. If the battery is bigger, the housing will be bigger. If the housing will be bigger, then so will the LCD.

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I agree. I think 4" would be an almost ideal size. I don't want the iPhone to be much bigger but a little bit bigger than it's current size would be something I would want. I also agree that a larger iPhone would allow Apple to put in a bigger battery to either give the same battery life for a faster processor or have a longer battery life in general.

As for people making comments about putting the iPhone in their pants pockets, I do this and have no problems about the iPhone being a little bigger.

I don't want a bigger iPhone. It won't fit in the pocket of my purse and I'm perfectly happy with the size I have

Stretch said:

That little half in can make a difference. The difference between fitting in your pocket and not fitting in your pocket.

Plus, retina won't be a crisp.

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How would retina not be crisp if it is on the way larger iPad screen?

dekan said:

How would retina not be crisp if it is on the way larger iPad screen?

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Apple likes standards. The iPad is retina because the doubled the resolution, while keeping the same size. If the iPhone grows to a 4, or 4.6in screen, then one of 2 things will happen. Either the resolution will stay the same, and the retina quality of the iPhone 4 won't be on the new model, or they'll do a new resolution, in which case, every iPhone app will have to get rewritten and redesigned.

Neither option looks like something Apple would be willing to do.

Stretch said:

Apple likes standards. The iPad is retina because the doubled the resolution, while keeping the same size. If the iPhone grows to a 4, or 4.6in screen, then one of 2 things will happen. Either the resolution will stay the same, and the retina quality of the iPhone 4 won't be on the new model, or they'll do a new resolution, in which case, every iPhone app will have to get rewritten and redesigned.

Neither option looks like something Apple would be willing to do.

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but... isn't that exactly what devs had to do when the iPhone went from the 3GS to the 4? After all, the 4 does have a 326ppi retina display! (vs 163 on the 3GS) They've already got the technology to increase pixel density (top and bottom layers), so I'd hardly consider that to be a feat at this point. If it makes the end user happier, I doubt they'd hesitate.

And it's not like the current apps wouldn't run, they'd just not be as crisp as ones developed for the new resolution. And as soon as the new apps are ready, it's as simple as an update!

Doug

No, with the 3GS to 4 update they only had to double the resolution for all their artwork, nothing else changed. If the entire resolution changes, then spacing is going to be different, along with image size.

I'd think that temporarily upscaling wouldn't be an issue. But I could be wrong... Guess we'll find out, eh?

Doug

I guess we will find out but if the iPhone 5 doesn't have a larger screen then I don't know if I'll upgrade depending what other features it will have. It doesn't have to be exactly 4" but something in that size range would be good. Ideally Apple should give us two different iPhone versions.

BDD888 said:

And who in their right mind puts their smartphones in their pants?? LOL!! Not too smart.

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Where else should it go? In a murse? How about a fanny pack? Belt holster? Glued to my ear? Please enlighten us. I've been carrying a smartphone around in my front pants pocket for several years now and it never occurred to me I was out of my mind in doing so.

lifeisabeach said:

Where else should it go? In a murse? How about a fanny pack? Belt holster? Glued to my ear? Please enlighten us. I've been carrying a smartphone around in my front pants pocket for several years now and it never occurred to me I was out of my mind in doing so.

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Same here. When I watch people struggle with their behemoth phones, having to manipulate them with two hands, it always makes me giggle. Bigger is not always better and at the end of the day, it needs to be useful as a phone. If you can't use it without two hands, it fails at its primary mission.

cwa107 said:

Bigger is not always better and at the end of the day, it needs to be useful as a phone.

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I agree that bigger is not always better but my smartphone is more than only a phone. I actually use it for other uses a lot more than I use it as a phone so the current screen is too small for me. I still think around 4" is a good compromise in size. I can't speak for anyone else, but 4" is still small enough for me to use with one hand but it offers a larger screen.

I also don't wear skin tight pants so it's not really an issue for me to fit it in my pockets. Ideally it would be best if we got to choose between two sizes. If Apple kept the resolution ratios the same then apps makers would only have to make their apps fit on the larger iPhone and then everything can be easily downscaled for the smaller iPhone.

EndlessMac said:

I also don't wear skin tight pants so it's not really an issue for me to fit it in my pockets. Ideally it would be best if we got to choose between two sizes. If Apple kept the resolution ratios the same then apps makers would only have to make their apps fit on the larger iPhone and then everything can be easily downscaled for the smaller iPhone.

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The "problem" here is that Apple still sets record sales numbers as the iPhone is now. Although a lot of people would like a larger iPhone, the reality is that Apple sells every single one that they make now and would make more if they could. They have little incentive to fragment the product line and plenty of reason to not do so.

I wouldn't COMPLETELY rule out the possibility of a slightly larger screen around 4" at some point, especially if Apple really sees the lack of one impacting sales. But right now, the market is speaking, and Apple is selling iPhones at the current form factor as fast as they can make them. A larger iPhone isn't going to happen any time soon, or at least not a wider one. Someone had an great theory a while back that Apple could take the space used by the home button, make it capacitive and thus extend the screen to make it 4 inches. That's definitely an interesting idea, it just all depends on how that extra space would get utilized.

lifeisabeach said:

Someone had an great theory a while back that Apple could take the space used by the home button, make it capacitive and thus extend the screen to make it 4 inches. That's definitely an interesting idea, it just all depends on how that extra space would get utilized.

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That would probably be the best solution. It would keep close to the current size while enlarging the screen to 4". If they made the screen edge to edge on the sides then they would only have to enlarge the iPhone a small fraction to get 4" if they wanted to keep the same screen ratio.

There is a lot of dead space around the iPhone screen. If Apple's engineers could do what you said then I think it would satisfy both sides. It would still be close to the current size but with a bigger screen.

I for one would welcome a larger screen for the next iphone. My business operates online, and each day I frequently go online to view my website and to carry out any work.
I agree with other forum members that the phone can remain the same size if the wasted area can be incorporated with the screen.

Here's an article that goes into great detail on how Apple could go about upping the iPhone to a 4" screen… it greatly expands on what I was referencing earlier. If a larger iPhone is going to happen, I'd put money on this.
The 4 inch iPhone 5 | The Verge Forums