Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays • Hacker News Board

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#31

Post by jhugg » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 6:34 PM UTC

If @3x is a thing, wouldn't 1080p be kind of an Occam's Razor resolution for a 4.7 device?

Besides the fact that 1080p is common and marketable, it would be the perfect resolution to mirror to an AppleTV.

And having both the 4.7 & 5.5 phones be @3x would motivate developers more to add @3x assets. If the 5.5 phone is the only @3x device in Apple's lineup for a while, it might be tempting not to invest.

And then a 4K (3840x2160) at @3x might be perfect for a 12.x inch iPad. That would mirror perfectly to 1080p or 4K TVs. It would be 16x9, which is hard to imagine, but mirroring to projectors might be more important for a 12" iPad than the smaller ones? I could really see it used in presentations and education.

I say go with the standard resolutions when in doubt, even though there is no real Apple precedent.

(edit to add content)

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#32

Post by bane » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 8:39 PM UTC

drzaiusapelord wrote: post #12

cnbuff410 wrote: post #4

Okay, I'm not trying to be a dick here. But everytime when I see the rumor about the screen size of iPhone 6, it always remind me how Gruber and Jim Dalrymple, two of the biggest Apple fans on the internet, mock the screen size of Samsung Note before. Note became instantly popular in Asia area and I always thought there are big market for big phones. I even argued with Jim on his G+ saying there are someone who genui…

I own a Nexus 5 which is a pretty big phone by American standards. I just spent the last few days in Korea. My phone would be considered small here. Lots of Note sized phones here. I saw kids watching TV and movies on the train or multi-tasking running two apps at the same time. It was pretty impressive and I'm sure the giant batteries in those things is a nice little perk. Next to them sat the occasional iPhone owne…

I was really hesitant to get one of those large phones, but my last trip to Korea and a visit by some friends here convinced me that like usual, Korea is living in the future w/r to portable electronics.

So I just got a Note and it's possibly one of the most liberating personal electronic devices I've gotten since my first smart phone. The Samsung software sucks as usual, but once you get things set up (taking all of half an hour) it's easily the best mobile device on the market right now.

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#33

Post by bane » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 8:43 PM UTC

cnbuff410 wrote: post #4

Okay, I'm not trying to be a dick here. But everytime when I see the rumor about the screen size of iPhone 6, it always remind me how Gruber and Jim Dalrymple, two of the biggest Apple fans on the internet, mock the screen size of Samsung Note before. Note became instantly popular in Asia area and I always thought there are big market for big phones. I even argued with Jim on his G+ saying there are someone who genui…

Gruber is a notorious shill. Daringfireball is about the only thing on HN I regularly flag because it's usually such brain free cheer leading drivel. But on occasion the analysis is good even if his introspection and self-awareness isn't.

His function in the technology news media is almost exactly like a political pundit, he sets the talking points and they'll reverberate around the Apple-sphere for years even they've long stopped making any kind of sense.

I didn't flag this one because for what it's worth, it's a decent approach and analysis and technically possible.

What's not said here is of course the denouncement that he's now obliged to make against the larger format phone (after towing the line for so many years that bigger phones are the worst thing since the last mass extinction event) and the writeup about how this entire kind of analysis is necessary because of weaknesses in Apple's approach to handling different screen size and resolutions that only now being solved.

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#34

Post by erikpukinskis » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 10:25 PM UTC

comex wrote: post #3

I know I'm in a small minority here (at least, judging by the years of clamor for larger iPhones), but I almost always use my iPhone one-handed, so I'm very skeptical about any larger display. Currently, when holding it in a relaxed position, my thumb can reach a bit to the left of or above the current display, but not both - there would probably be a difficult to reach zone in the top left corner. A larger size woul…

Yeah, one-handed use is one of the best things about the iPhone. I switched to Android (Moto X) several months ago from an iPhone 5s. I've been using it one-handed, but it is really painful. By the afternoon I start getting cramps in my thumb. Reaching for the home/keyboard/app menu/etc buttons is just really awkward. And the Moto X is one of the smallest screen Android phones you can get.

Part of it is that Android just isn't designed for one-handed use, but the limited width is a big part of it too.

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#35

Post by erikpukinskis » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 10:28 PM UTC

bane wrote: post #33

cnbuff410 wrote: post #4

Okay, I'm not trying to be a dick here. But everytime when I see the rumor about the screen size of iPhone 6, it always remind me how Gruber and Jim Dalrymple, two of the biggest Apple fans on the internet, mock the screen size of Samsung Note before. Note became instantly popular in Asia area and I always thought there are big market for big phones. I even argued with Jim on his G+ saying there are someone who genui…

Gruber is a notorious shill. Daringfireball is about the only thing on HN I regularly flag because it's usually such brain free cheer leading drivel. But on occasion the analysis is good even if his introspection and self-awareness isn't. His function in the technology news media is almost exactly like a political pundit, he sets the talking points and they'll reverberate around the Apple-sphere for years even they'v…

That's an abuse of flagging. I wouldn't be surprised if the moderators have your flags going straight to /dev/null because you're using it to mark earnest content you disagree with.

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#36

Post by bane » Sat, Aug 23, 2014, 11:58 PM UTC

erikpukinskis wrote: post #35

bane wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Gruber is a notorious shill. Daringfireball is about the only thing on HN I regularly flag because it's usually such brain free cheer leading drivel. But on occasion the analysis is good even if his introspection and self-awareness isn't. His function in the technology news media is almost exactly like a political pundit, he sets the talking points and they'll reverberate around the Apple-sphere for years even they'v…

That's an abuse of flagging. I wouldn't be surprised if the moderators have your flags going straight to /dev/null because you're using it to mark earnest content you disagree with.

No it's not. Read the guidelines. Half the garbage he writes is just fanboyism and doesn't even meet the "interesting" criteria. In fact, similar fawning crap by other writers are even autokilled, but because Gruber writes about Apple his stuff lives on.

Re: Conjecture Regarding Larger iPhone Displays

#37

Post by demallien » Mon, Aug 25, 2014, 10:33 AM UTC

jgruber wrote: post #24

demallien wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So what's your point? For what it's worth, Gruber is on record as not going to buy the 5.5" version, as it's too large (the Talk Show podcasts of recent weeks). He also still believes that the smaller form factor is better, but as Apple doesn't appear to be continuing the 4" line, what's a guy like Gruber, who is all-in on Apple, supposed to do? Not talk about Apple?

Better to say I expect to prefer the 4.7 over the 5.5-inch phone, personally. But I would never say I won't buy a product before I've actually seen it in person. (I have seen other 5.5-inch phones, though, and none seem like something I'd want to carry in my pocket everywhere.)

Ahhh, sorry John, I didn't want to put words in your mouth, but I wrote that post on my phone, so I went with a shorter version of you without the caveats / conditions that you mentioned. My bad...