Sizing Chart: What is the Right Size Phone?

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4.5" Phone Sizing Chart showing the [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...] Keyboard

What is the Right Size Phone?

Only you can answer that question. Go hold the different phones. Take time to play with them and try out the features. After a half-hour or longer, what feels right to you?

Android Central's recent Readers Choice survey found that [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]. That makes sense because that is about how many wear Women's Small or Men's XS gloves or smaller. Note that men tend to have thicker fingers and hands than women. An average women might fit into a Men's XS glove but the fingers probably are not long enough. So for finger length comparison, an average women's fingers are often as long as a Men's Small.

The chart shows reaching with your right thumb only while holding a typical 4.5" phone. Hopefully this is not while driving or in class because that would be wrong, right?

Notice how the keyboard is positioned right over the easiest area to reach with one hand? But let's break this down a bit. When you are typing on a laptop or PC, what size keyboard do you prefer? 15"? 17"? 20"?

You probably didn't say 3.5". Even a 10" tablet is pretty small to use both hands but you can easily use a two-thumb keyboard like the [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...].

For those times when you are typing and holding the phone with one hand, take a look at the sizing chart above. Look at how the SwiftKey keyboard is optimized for one-handed typing:

Green is an average Men's Medium glove (size 9)

[HL]Yellow[/HL] is a Men's Small glove (size 8½)

Red is a Men's XS Extra Small glove (size 8)

Again, no sizing chart can tell you what will feel best to you. That's why phones have screen sizes from 2.5" to 5.3". Plus the current phones are so thin and light that they all feel smaller.

In the end, phones are like shoes. Try them and see what feels right for you. Don't let anyone tell you the one size phone you are to buy.

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Sample Android iPhone Theme Created with ADWLauncher

Here is another Sizing Chart to see how well you could reach the icons on a launcher screen.

See the [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...] for a way to quickly theme your phone to look like an iPhone.

these are really helpful! how about some that show womens hand sizes...?

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Originally Posted by mcantu [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]

these are really helpful! how about some that show womens hand sizes...?

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Good point. I added this to the opening post:

Note that men tend to have thicker fingers and hands than women. An average women might fit into a Men's XS glove but the fingers probably are not long enough. So for finger length comparison, an average women's fingers are often as long as a Men's Small.

hand flat on a table, with pinkie and thumb at full stretch, I can span 9 inches/23cm. I think I should be ok with a 4.5 screen. However USING it is not my issue. My concern with these larger devices is pocketability! (I'm used to a blackberry Pearl)

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Originally Posted by dancing-bass [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]

What is the Right Size Phone?

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Size isn’t important.

... somebody had to say it.

Hand stretch may be less important than readability to the older set. You young kids (anyone under 50) have no problem refocusing on small close things. We older people have lost that ability (which is why reading glasses manufacturers are in business), so a larger screen is better. Now if only someone could put a 10" screen on a 4" phone ...

We also sometimes have to deal with arthritic hands, Rukbat. Since I'm one of those older folks who learned to touch type, this whole thing of using thumbs for typing really has me going in circles! A 10" screen on a 4" phone would be nice, but how about adding a full sized, physical QWERTY keyboard??? LOL!

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Originally Posted by MBJewell [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]

We also sometimes have to deal with arthritic hands, Rukbat. Since I'm one of those older folks who learned to touch type, this whole thing of using thumbs for typing really has me going in circles!

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I can't even try. I use one finger on the phone.

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A 10" screen on a 4" phone would be nice, but how about adding a full sized, physical QWERTY keyboard??? LOL!

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I carry one in my laptop bag - I can't stand laptop keyboards either.

5.3" Screen from the Galaxy Note, keyboard from the Blackberry Bold 9900, the durability of an old Motorola Star-tac, all on a device about the size of an iPhone and running ICS.

perfection! :)

According to me -
Phone choice should be according to requirement and test, Size does not matter.

Even i read the whole communication and i really like Sizing Chart .

4.3 inches is the sweetspot

I found that 4.5 is too big(Galaxy S2) and 4.0(Nexus S) is a tad too small

these are really helpful!

I played with the note at least half dozen times in store and if seemed to be the perfect size for me. I think 5"-5.5" screen will be a standard even in the near future. There will be a market for small iPhone 4" sized customers out there.

sent from Evo4G using Tapatalk 2

Hubby needs a new phone. He's an old schooler (senior citizen) who's reluctantly moving to a smartphone in the next couple weeks (finally sold him with the credit card swiper software). It has taken a lot of persuasion as he's reluctant about spending $30 a month for the privilege. He's moving from a basic flip phone, texts minimally, little camera use, no music, almost never uses internet, and is a Mario-type Plumbing contractor...so it had better be sturdy.

I use Verizon's HTC Thunderbolt and have considered that might be the best choice for him so I can help him through the learning curve (it was tough for me and would be impossible for him without support - and I'm it). Do you have any suggestions for those of us trying to keep pace in a fast moving techie world?

Thanks so much! :confused:
Jolinda

I think anything between 4-5 inchs is good,any bigger or smaller than that would be horrible,for me at least.When I had my S2,it was easy to hold and use with one hand.I'm getting an S3(maybe a gnex but most likely an S3) and I don't think I will have any problems with its size.

This is an awesome guide. 4.5" is as big as I will go and 4" is as small as I will go. I'm 15 with average sized hands.

5.3" Screen of Galaxy Note.. Does anyone else feel the same?

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Originally Posted by BestKent [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]

5.3" Screen of Galaxy Note.. Does anyone else feel the same?

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I'd like the same dimensions as the note with a 5.5 inch screen. But for me I use my phone as my computer/iPod/phone/navigation. If I just used it for phone capabilities I'd say 4-4.5

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Android Central Forums

Funny how we all just get used to the larger form factor pretty quickly. It's only a couple of years ago I was enjoying my htc Legend and then when I got the GS2 it just seemed so much bigger and better. Now onto the S3 and I'm loving it for web browsing, video and youtube. Maybe in some ways a larger phone suits the ladies because they generally put it back in their bag when they're done. For us guys it's the pocket and the bigger the phone the more uncomfortable it tends to be. Thinking about it.. probably 4" would be best but could I now live with the smaller screen? Don't think so.. What we really need is a device that's comfy in the hand and the pocket and then when we need to use it for web and video it suddenly turns into something like a 7" or larger! Now that would be interesting. Guess we'll get there in the future.. :cool:

alanandroid

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Originally Posted by milominderbinder [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...]

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Sample Android iPhone Theme Created with ADWLauncher

Here is another Sizing Chart to see how well you could reach the icons on a launcher screen.

See the [Only registered and activated users can see links. Click Here To Register...] for a way to quickly theme your phone to look like an iPhone.

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Jobs must have had small hands, MXS hands. Why else would he say 3.5 is the perfect size?

I'm curious if the people who want a 5"+ screen guys or girls. Girls have the luxury of carrying the brick of a phone in their purses. In my case (i'm a guy) even a 4.5" feels too big in my pocket.

4.3 is the most suitable size.

I find that the Galaxy Note II is the perfect size for me. My tablet is 7 inches and i can fit it into my pockets. A 5.5 inch phone fits just right for me and is not in the least uncomfortable for me. The larger screen of the Note II also makes it easier for gaming and web browsing than smaller phones.

The mobile phones size can be of 4.1.