Smartphone Screen Real Estate: How Big Is Big Enough?

MojoKid writes "Aside from the terrible nickname (it sounds like a term for the spoiled offspring of fabulous people), phablets are somewhat controversial because they seem to be the epitome of inflated phone sizes. A lot of people wanted bigger, and this is 'bigger' to the extreme. A larger screen on a smartphone is attractive for obvious reasons, but surely there's a limit. So how big is too big? If you're not into parsing out the particulars of form factors and use cases, here's a really easy way to figure out if your phone or phablet is too big: Can you hold the device in one hand and 1) unlock the phone, 2) type out a text message with your thumb, and 3) adjust the volume with the rocker without using your other hand? If not, you might need a smaller phone."

Re:I have a Galaxy Note

[gigaherz]

Forgot to say, disable broadband connections (stick to GSM) and WiFi unless you need them, turn down the screen brightness, and avoid having background tasks, specially those with constant internet connections (PUSH notifications use a single service for all the notifications, and it's server-initiated instead of polled, so they don't matter as much). You can triple the battery life that way.

Re: Galaxy Note II would be the limit

[Vanderhoth]

Just got my a GalaXy Note ll two days ago. writing this with the stylist. Way better than typing. I was worried that hand writing was on its way out, but this is great.

Re:I have a Galaxy Note

[arkhan_jg]

Me too. I keep it mostly in my suit jacket inside pocket most of the time, or my coat pocket when casual - I wear slacks instead of jeans, so it goes there (in a case) in summer.

The bigger screen is glorious for email and web browsing - especially in landscape - going back to my old 4" galaxy s feels like using a toy phone now, it's just so small.

I can unlock and text with my thumb if I want to (helllllo, swype and now swiftkey flow) and running on cyanogenmod 10.1 the thing is lovely and fast. I do tend to hold it in one hand and type with the other though. I use it more than my nexus 7, simply because I always have it with me, though the mini tablet is ideal for sofa browsing and meetings as it can still be held one handed but gives that bit more screen estate.

I don't see myself going back to any smartphone that's significantly smaller than 5"; even the galaxy s3 (which is pretty large for a smartphone in its own right) is a bit small for my preference now.

I guess it's what you use it for; mine is a full blown mini computer, complete with ssh client, that fits in my pocket. Mobile data is where it's at, and actual phone calls are a bit of a rarity. I can get two days out of my note no problem, because the battery is that much wider. Not sure I'd want it much thicker though, would make it harder to span your hand round it, even when you do have big-man hands like me. Just have to hope some of the promised battery tech improvements that keep showing up in research actually start ending up in real devices.

Nexus 4 - 4.7in - is as big as I would want

[s7uar7]

The Nexus 4 is my first touch-screen phone and I wouldn't want anything larger. I can just stretch my thumb across the whole screen while holding it with one hand; any larger and I would either need to use two hands or be prone to dropping it.

Re: Galaxy Note II would be the limit

[itsdapead]

Just got my a GalaXy Note ll two days ago. writing this with the stylist.

Yes... we can tell :-)

(Hint - try enabling 'complete recognition' - this is squirrelled away under Settings > Personal > Language and Input > Samsung keyboard > Handwriting - I find it more reliable and makes catching mistakes easier).

Happy Note 2 owner here!!

[rodrigoandrade]

Last Xmas I gave myself a Galaxy Note 2, upgrading from an aging HD2. I'm a big screen whore so it was a no brainer.

Yes, at first it's cumbersome and unwieldy and I took a couple weeks of daily usage to get used to it. All reviews pointed this out, so I knew what I was getting into.

Now I can operate it one-handed (ok, I have big NBA-player hands) and it fits in any pocket if I remove the rubbery cover I got at DX.

Any S3 or iPhone 5 is tiny by comparsion. I just don't see mysef going back to small screens.

Re:I have a Galaxy Note

[DiSKiLLeR]

Hear hear. I have a Galaxy Note N7000 and think its the best thing since sliced bread.

I got it when it first came out, and from 2.3 to 4.0 to 4.1 each update has been amazing.

I started out with a Sony Ericsson P900, P990i, iPhone 3G, iPhone 4, HTC Sensation (which I loved) and then Galaxy Note.

So my last 2 phones I kept getting bigger, and I never looked back.

I keep my phone in my front jeans pocket and never had a problem with it being 'too large'. Though I must admit, any time I've seen someone holding my phone to their head on a call looked comical and so I guess I must look the same when I am talking on my phone. Oh well. :D