My predictions:
In 2014, companies will continue to iterate on based on their existing products. Processors will get faster. OEMs will put more RAM in their phones. 16/32GB will be the starting points for internal memory and 64GB options will still be rare. I suspect that 64GB will only be significant options on phones that shoot 4K video.
Nexus and Google Play edition
New Nexus 10 (finally). Not made by Samsung. The next Nexus phone will be a Nexus 5 (2014). The next Nexus 7 inch tablet will be the Nexus 7 (2014). There will Google Play editions of the next Galaxy S, the next HTC One. Motorola will not make a Nexus phone in 2014.
We will see a Google Now smartwatch released in 2014. Motorola will be involved in the smartwatch.
Oh and no Nexus device will have a expandable memory card slot. And forget about a removable battery.
Samsung
Samsung will release a Galaxy S5 and a Galaxy Note 4. The Galaxy S5 will have a slightly larger screen and the overall size will grow just a bit. Samsung's plastic will remain. I'm also predicting that the Galaxy S5 will have a slight curved based on the Galaxy Round. The Galaxy Note 4 will go the same route (slightly larger) but with the faux-leather.
This will also be the year where Samsung launches with Exynos in major LTE markets instead of Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips.
Tizen will remain irrelevant to the US market. But they'll still make a boat load of devices (Megas, Cameras, Tabs). Samsung may have jumped the shark in 2013 though.
HTC
HTC continues it's slide towards irrelevance. The follow up to the HTC One will be a good looking device but HTC won't have the marketing dollars to see it through. HTC will continue with Mini and Max variants of the next "One" and the Desire brand will continue on for budget and prepaid lines. Motorola and LG will distance themselves from HTC in terms of global marketshare.
LG
LG will grow based on strong products but it won't be anything significant. I see them launching multiple curved screen devices in 2014 and tech reviewers will prefer LG's curved phones over Samsung's curved phones. Only way LG makes a significant dent though is if they spend Samsung money on Marketing. LG will release a smartwatch.
Motorola
Motorola will continue to build on the software strategy: 1. Ensure that we build on a foundation of pure Android, 2. Build experiences that compliment Android and Google services, not compete with them, and 3. Ensure that we can build software that gives value back to the user.
Motorola phones of 2014 won't match specs with the flagship devices from folks like LG, HTC, and Samsung. But even with "lower" specs, Motorola's 2014 devices will perform just as good as the higher-spec'ed devices from the other OEMs. Motorola will stick to Super AMOLED screens for their flagship devices that are 4.7" and larger.
Motorola won't release a MAXX phone outside of the 2014 DROID line - and yes, the DROIDs will continue.
And because they're putting apps like Motorola Assist and Touchless Controls in the Play Store, the Moto X will be able to do the same things as it's successor.
ZTE/Huawei
For these guys, their high-end devices won't make a dent in the US. But expect to see them continue to be the white label provider for carrier-branded phones.
Sony
Sony will release a Windows Phone device. Sony's Android phone still won't break through in the US market.
Nokia
Nokia grows marketshare for Windows Phone completely distancing itself from BlackBerry as the defacto number 3 option. Windows Phone updates will bring features that people have been asking for (like a "proper" notification center) but visually, they won't be like what people have been wanting.
Nokia's Android phone will be released, but it'll be more like Amazon and their "forked" Fire OS.
Apple
The next iPhone (iPhone 6, presumably) will NOT go over 4". It will roughly be the same size as the iPhone 5S. It'll carry over the fingerprint scanner. The processor will be bumped up. The camera specs will be bumped up. But the next version of iOS will be the story.
The next iPad will get the fingerprint scanner and iOS 8 will add proper multi-user accounts for their tablets.
The upstarts
Blu, Cyanogen, Firefox OS, Ubuntu, Sailfish will remain niche products, irrelevant to the mass market.
BlackBerry
R.I.P. 2014
Differentiation in Android
More important than hardware will be the software. Motorola's 2013 phones will get Android updates faster than Google Play edition devices from 2013. Google Now will add new commands. Samsung won't stop adding S-software. Software and UI changes that OEMs add to Android (or make replacements of existing features) will continue. Get over it if you want all Android phones to run "stock" Android out of the box - technically the Nexus 5 does not.
64-bit support will be on most Android flagships, but nothing is going to fully take advantage of it in 2014.
And companies will continue to call their improvements revolutionary when they're just evolutionary and iterative. And people will still be upset over that marketing message.
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