Analysts Call on Apple to Release a “Phablet,” Satisfy Market Demand

As the smartphone industry continues to mature, the phablets are getting hard to ignore. You’ll know these devices when you see them. Mainly represented by Samsung’s Galaxy Note series at this moment in time, phablets are those smart devices that live in the space between phones and tablets, attempting to offer the best of both worlds… If you’re an iPhone user with phablet envy, then you’re painfully aware of Apple’s absence in the market, and this week a few analysts are calling on the Cupertino company to get wise and release a phone with a screen size of 5 inches or more.

Arguments about the point at which a screen outgrows optimal usability used to be theoretical in nature, but Samsung has changed that. Say what you will about how it looks using a phone that hides one half of your head, people are responding pretty well to the Galaxy Note 2, and all signs point to Samsung rushing a Galaxy Note 3 into the hands of eager consumers who might care less what Apple is doing with their sub-5-inch screen devices.

But we’re not here to praise Samsung’s efforts (whether or not they deserve it); instead, we’re considering the comments of analysts Shaw Wu of Sterne Agee and Ben Reitzes of Barclays. Both of these individuals think Apple is “leaving money on the table” by not catering to those in the market for a phablet. If Reitzes is anywhere near accurate with his prediction that phablet sales are about to grow from 27 million in 2012 to 230 million in 2015, it’s hard to imagine Apple turning its nose up at the segment.

Of course, there are resolutions to consider, but some say a crazy huge iPhone Plus might not have to break the App Store… Here’s the thing, Apple might think 5 inches is “too big” for the iOS interface, but if they’re going to keep the iPhone relatively small, then what other innovation is going to win over those who see something bigger and can’t help but want it?

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Devin Wieland

 

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