What is your ideal screen size?

DCProjMgr

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The Lumia 800 was the perfect size for dialing or texting one-handed on the train. I realize that for people who use their phone primarily for media and web browsing that bigger is better. But I have a tablet for that. What I need in a phone is great connectivity and the ability to operate with one hand while I'm walking through the airport holding a carry-on bag. Is it too much to ask for a flagship phone in that size? These days it seems like the only make budget phones in smaller sizes. (I currently use a Nokia 620 - love the size, but I'm giving up LTE.)
 

Coreldan

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DC: so why so you need a flagship phone?

Processing speed, RAM, memory, quality of screen, quality of camera, build quality & materials, connectivity (such as LTE he mentioned).

Plenty of reasons. My phone is so important to me that I won't buy a non-flagship phone, but the reason I buy flagship phones definitely isn't in the sadly growing screen sizes :p
 

Slai

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Yes, I get that flagship phones are better in specs, but to what end? What tasks do you perform on your phone that require it to be top specced when viewing comfort isn't a priority?
Personally I webbrowse a lot, so a big screen is a huge boost to that experience. I also play a bit and watch loads of video, both of which also take a big bump from a larger screen.
Im just unsure what features a flagship phone offers that are not screen related but that a midrange device cannot do equally well :) .

The camera: fine. But then again that seems like a 808 might be the better deal. However it doesn't have LTE, but Im unsure why LTE is required anyways unless youre streaming huge quantities of data (like movies)?

If you see my point.
 

Coreldan

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Yes, I get that flagship phones are better in specs, but to what end? What tasks do you perform on your phone that require it to be top specced when viewing comfort isn't a priority?
Personally I webbrowse a lot, so a big screen is a huge boost to that experience. I also play a bit and watch loads of video, both of which also take a big bump from a larger screen.
Im just unsure what features a flagship phone offers that are not screen related but that a midrange device cannot do equally well :) .

The camera: fine. But then again that seems like a 808 might be the better deal. However it doesn't have LTE, but Im unsure why LTE is required anyways unless youre streaming huge quantities of data (like movies)?

If you see my point.

I see your point, I havn't used the lowed end WPs much to know if they are slow or not, but for example it's easy to tell (even if WP7 vs. WP8) the difference in performance across the board in my old Omnia 7 vs. Lumia 920.

Hell, if only my N8 wouldn't have been much slower than the Omnia 7 is all daily tasks, I would've just probably sticked with my N8. N8 with modern components, gief! :D
 

AngryNil

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I think 4.3", done right. If the 8X was a Nokia device, it would be incredible. (But hey, props to HTC for creating a great device. If only it could get the software support of a Lumia.)

Even though it's very unlikely, I really wish the Catwalk will be a 4.3" device, taking the 720 form factor and stuffing in more good stuff, while using aluminium to keep the thickness at bay. Nokia can go all-out for the phablet, but please keep the Catwalk small!
 

DavidinCT

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I guess every person will have their preference here. Personally, I think a screen should be in the 4 to 4.9". Anything over 5" is too large for a phone, you need to fit it in you pocket and for it to be portable. We are getting into a tablet range over 5". That's just my thoughts here.
 

Slai

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Davidin: yet the s4 is 4.99" (5") and is smaller than the s3 which is 4.7" or so.
So no, you can probably even get a 5.5" device pocketable given an even smaller bezel.
 

DCProjMgr

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Should try the 808 :) . Great screen, great camera, Belle is quite good recently, etc.
I had an 808 last year for a while. The camera resolution is crazy - you can crop down to a small section of the original photo and still have good resolution. And yes, Symbian Belle is a huge advance and should be fine for a lot of people. However... the 808 is still big. (With good reason, but still...)

DC: so why so you need a flagship phone?

Because I want the great camera and 1 GB RAM and 64 Gb storage and killer looks. I can afford to pay 600 - 800 for a phone that has what I want - but all the smaller phones are cheap plastic mid-range crap. Why should I have to settle for a dumpy under-powered device just because I don't want to carry a boat anchor (i.e. Lumia 920, S4, HTC One) around with me?

I use my phone to connect my laptop and tablet to the web from various locations, so LTE is a requirement. (And, alas, something the 800 didn't have.) Having a great hotspot with me means I don't have to buy 4g for my tablet and laptop and pay a separate monthly fee. Also, hotels these days charge about $10 / day for internet service, so having my own is a big plus.

The iPhone is probably the best selling series of phones ever and they are the right size - I don't understand why it doesn't occur to other manufacturers that there is a big market sitting there for premium quality hand-holdable devices.

There's nothing wrong with big phones; just reading through here I can see that they are perfect for some people. I don't think I'm alone, though, in putting smaller size and lighter weight as an decision-making spec for a mobile device.
 
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Slai

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I think the iPhone sells mostly on marketing, not functionality.
If they made an iphone with a 4.5" screen, it would probably sell as well as any iphone.
Though I get your view, I personally can operate an s4 easily with one hand. And I have quite small hands.
I get that people might like a smaller device, and I really would obviously buy a WP for that, like the 820/620.
Or wait to see what the s4 mini will be like.

There may be a market for topspecced small form phones, but I don't think the iPhones success can be attributed to that.

I can see calling the 920 and the htc one (to a certain degree) boat anchors, but the s4 is soooo light and "small", it seems a strange thing to lump it in with the massive 920 which is both wide, tall, thick and heavy :p .

I don't know... Im getting the s4 for the camera, the hardware, the design and the small innovative and useful things the 920/WP cannot do.
I do see that others obviously have different requirements, and if I were in your shoes, Id probably be pissed about the lack of options for a smaller phone.

Samsung tried with the s3 mini, but seems they cannot press enough power into such a small device to make it top notch.
I do hope theyre able to make the s4 mini attractive. Have you considered that one, btw? Don't know its specs, but could be they learned from the s3 mini and actually made a good smallsized device :) .
 

chezm

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Originally i thought 4" was the perfect size, Galaxy S3 4.7" seemed large...too large compared to my wifes iPhone 5 4" display. However, now that i've invested in Lumia 920...i realized S3's body just didnt fit right in my hands. I couldn't use the S3 with single hand, i can with the L920.

So right now, 4.5" is perfect for me
 

Hoangboy

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4" 480x800 for low end .
4.3" 720p for mid end .
4.7" 1080p with thin bezel ( same size with HTC One X but higher ppi ) - high end .

I think those size and resolution are acceptable . Basiccally I prefer the 4.3" 720p the most

Any thing smaller than 4" is just a very big shame ( sorry 620 user for this :( )
 

purple_dreamer

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I love screen sizes ranging from 4.3 to 5. The reason I bought ATIV S is the screen size factor, plus with its relatively thin bezel. Feels great on hand, and most of the time I can use it for various occasions one-handed.
 

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