A small rant

[TeknoBug]

I'm seeing a trend in the Android mobile world that they're just getting bigger and bigger, back in 2008-2009 the screens were normally 3.2-3.5" which iwas a tad small for me even though I had the Motorola Quench and LG Optimus One at the time and then the HTC Desire came along with a 3.7" screen which was "just right" at the time. At the time of having the Desire I was switching between that and the Blackberry (Curve & Bold for the hardware keyboard) and when my upgrade was up I got the LG Optimus LTE which was a 4.5" display and was an awesome device to hold in my hand but once the phone upgraded from Gingerbread to ICS through OTA it became a lemon and LG had no interest in fixing that so I swapped the device for an HTC One X which is 4.8" display and that's just a touch too large for me since I carry the phone in my pant pocket, however I put up with it and it's probably the largest I will go.

Unfortunately, they're just getting large and larger as if it has a growth disorder, is the growing size in Android devices actually popular? Or are companies just doing a pissing contest and the market is just playing along (I've seen this before in automotive industry)? My problem is that next year I may get a new phone and I'm concerned that I won't get a phone smaller than 5" anymore, especially Android which I prefer, and phones like the HTC One Mini and Galaxy Mini aren't available in Canada as far as I know.

I have zero interest in a phablet, I don't carry around a bag or backpack, and I already have a tablet to use when I'm on the train or bus.

 

[SpookDroid]

I don't think all phones will go that large. The "Phablet" market IS gaining ground, but it's by no means displacing 'normal' phones. It is, however, quite comical to see, say, an iPhone's screen next to a Galaxy S4 or even better, a Note 2 or Note 3... It just hits you how small that tiny screen looks, and how normal it used to seem.

I'd say for most people anything between 4.5 and 5 inches would be just right, so I expect most manufacturers to come up with a flagship device in that range. That being said, 5" does seem posed to become the new 4", so if five inches is too big for you, then you might have to start looking into importing a 'mini' version...

 

[Gekko]

1. descriptive thread titles are better than vague ones.
2. market demand will dictate what's offered.
3. the beauty of Android is choice - and i think we will have lots of choice in display sizes for a long time.
4. as display sizes have gotten larger - bezels and overall size have gotten smaller - offsetting the bulk.
5. i remember when i showed people my OG EVO at 4.3" display and people were crying that it was too big. now those same people are buying S4's, Notes, and Megas.