I had a funny experience when I got my Galaxy Note II a year or so ago. I had a Nexus 7 that I used at home all the time for web browsing and general stuff. But the day I got the Note II was the last day I used the Nexus 7 for much of anything. There just wasn't enough of a difference to matter. I had everything on my phone and nearly the same screen size as the Nexus 7 - but in a lightweight version that fit in my pocket.
More recently, I was cleaning out a drawer and found my old Google Ion (HTC MyTouch). The screen height on that phone is just about exactly the same as the screen width on my Galaxy Note 3. (My daughter has the Note II now.)
Maybe the reason these big phones work so well for me is that I don't use them as phones much at all. They are pocket Internet tablets.
> Maybe the reason these big phones work so well for me is that I don't use them as phones much at all. They are pocket Internet tablets.
Exactly. I try avoiding talking on the phone as much as possible. Text/email is the way I prefer. And reading/browsing is what I do most on phone. Hence bigger screen is a big plus.
I think one reason big phones took off in Europe/Asia was because much larger percentage of people use public transportation, meaning they spend an hour or more every working day sitting/standing in bus/subway. How do you use that time? Of course you read/watch/browse using your phone and bigger screen is a big plus. Talking on the phone is usually not practical.
Americans mostly have to drive which means they can't browse/watch while moving from 1 location to another.
I'm pretty sure NONE of the top Apple designers/execs commute to work in a public transportation or be driven in a limo, hence they don't understand WHY bigger screen phone is so attractive to a big chunk of users out there.
> I think one reason big phones took off in Europe/Asia was because much larger percentage of people use public transportation
I didn't notice that in Europe where here in France a lot of people have iPhones. But China and HK? Full of big screen phones, Galaxy Notes are extremely popular there and I actually never heard of those phones before going to HK.
More recently, I was cleaning out a drawer and found my old Google Ion (HTC MyTouch). The screen height on that phone is just about exactly the same as the screen width on my Galaxy Note 3. (My daughter has the Note II now.)
Maybe the reason these big phones work so well for me is that I don't use them as phones much at all. They are pocket Internet tablets.