The rise of the phablet

10.1, 8.9, 8, 7.7, 7, 5.8, 5.5, 5.3, 5... 1.5. What are these? Screen sizes, in inches, that Samsung has launched mobile devices in. And, in unveiling this myriad collection, the company has created a brandnew category of devices — part phone, part tablet — nicknamed the phablet. The phablet was mocked in late 2011 when the tech press saw it first in the shape of the Galaxy Note. And why not? The five-inch Dell Streak had failed miserably just a year before. In fact, the 5.3-inch Note was even bigger when placed next to the ever-popular iPhone with its 3.5-inch screen. In its first year, Samsung surprised everyone by selling more than ten million Notes. It followed up with the even bigger 5.5-inch Galaxy Note II that has gone on to sell five million units n the first two months, and is fast approaching the ten million mark globally. Sony is now trying to get intothe game with the five-inch Xperia Z, ZTE with a similarsized Grand S, HTC with Droid DNA, LG with the Optimus Vu,

and Lenovo with the IdeaPhone K5. Samsung itself is covering the lower end of the market with Galaxy Grand, and Kogan with an even cheaper Agora. However, the standout of the pack has to be Huawei’s Ascend Mate — with a staggering 6.1-inch screen. And rumour has it that Sony is working on a 6.44-inch phablet, while the Galaxy Note III will come in at 6.3 inch. The size problem can be solved considerably by pairing the phone with Bluetooth headsets and smart watches. As tech writer Natasha Lomas points out on the website Techcrunch, “Any added awkwardness is outweighed by the benefits of having more glass to play with, which in turn increases the usefulness of the device in several ways.” Besides, phablets inherit the advantage of smartphones “they are both in our pockets and almost certainly online”. ABI Research wants us to watch out for the phablet avalanche. It estimates that almost 83 million phablets were shipped in 2012, a whopping increase of 4504 per cent from 2011. About 150 mi l l ion s u c h device s will be sold in 2 0 1 3 , accounting for 18 per cent of all smartphone sales. Senior analyst Joshua Flood says, “One of the chief drivers for phablets is the amount of time people use their smartphones for web browsing, reading articles and newspapers on the go, or simply navigating their journeys. Larger screen sizes make a significant difference to the user’s experience when compared to conventional-sized touch screens that are between 3.5 and 4 inches.” Barclays projects the phablet market will grow fourfold to $135 billion (about Dh495 billion) in three years, while shipments will jump ninefold to 228 million. Scientific American’s associate tech editor, Larry Greenemeier, believes more than 200 million phablets will be sold in 2015. IHS iSuppli is far more conservative. It believes that in 2016, global phablet shipments will only reach 146 million units. And it expects shipments to more than double this year to 60.4 million units, a 136 per cent increase from 25.6 million

last year. Vinita Jakhanwal, director of small and medium displays, says, “With consumers demanding more lifelike viewing experiences, the trend to offer such devices makes perfect sense, especially considering the increase in rich content that is being made available on smartphones.” Sales are expected to come largely from the Asia-Pacific region. Also, in cost-conscious emerging markets, a reasonably priced phablet offers a great two-in-one alternative. In fact, Samsung’s latest earnings report has been as stunning as the AMOLED screens on its top-end phones — a revenue of 56.06 trillion won (about Dh188 billion), and an operating profit of 8.84 trillion won. That is an impressive jump of 89.3 per cent profits in the fourth quarter of 2012, over the same period the previous y e a r . Samsung specifically credits the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note II for its mobile fortunes. Neil Mawston, Executive Director, Strategy Analytics, adds, “Despite tough competition in stores and courtrooms, Samsung continued to deliver numerous hit models, from the high-end Galaxy Note II phablet to the mass-market Galaxy Y.” He believes 2013 will be the year of the phablet. But what about the mighty Apple? On a recent earnings call, CEO Tim Cook noted that the four-inch iPhone 5 “provides a larger screen size without sacrificing the one-handed ease of use. We put a lot of thinking into screen size and believe we’ve picked the right one.” However, the irony is that in a few years, these biggerscreened phones might give way to... no-screen phones. Concepts such as Google Glass and SixthSense will radically alter the need for traditional screens, big or small.