Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

A 4 inch screen is definitely not the ideal size for a smartphone

S

SomeDudeAsking

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 23, 2010
1,250
2
My phone contract expired recently so I had the opportunity to renew. I went to the carrier store to pick out a phone they have in stock since I made a decision that the 5.5 inch screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note II would be a bit too big for day to day comfort. I had a choice of the top end smartphones from HTC, Motorola, Samsung and Apple.

I could have gotten any of the top smartphones for about the same price on contract. There were working demo models so I could play and compare. I narrowed it down to between the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3.

The thing that swayed me to the Galaxy S3 is the gorgeous screen. Comparing the iPhone 5 screen with the Galaxy S3 screen, the Galaxy S3 wins hands down. The size of the iPhone 5 screen at 4 inches was so small compared to the Galaxy S3 at 4.8 inches.

I loaded up YouTube videos, Google Maps, and Macrumors on both devices. It was striking how much more useable these apps/websites are with the extra screen space of the Galaxy S3. I could see more content and also with larger font sizes, which meant much less scrolling.

To add to my decision, the blacks on the Galaxy S3 are true black. One of the biggest things that has bugged me about the iPhone that I''ve had all these years is that it's screen can't render true blacks. For example, if you've ever tried watching a video on the iPhone screens, the blacks on it are actually grayish because of the backlighting that bleeds the blacks. This bugs me a tremendous amount.

I think the size and color reproduction of the Galaxy S3 screen are the ideal for what we should expect from a smartphone of today. There is no way I can ever go back to an iPhone screen after having used my Galaxy S3 for a week now.
 
Z

Zwhaler

macrumors 604
Jun 10, 2006
7,267
1,965
I'm thinking of getting a Galaxy Note 2. I know it's big, but that's exactly why it's nice ... albeit not for the majority of people.
 
D

darster

Suspended
Aug 25, 2011
1,703
1
I disagree. A 4 inch screen is a perfect size. I had the razr maxx, and the phone was too bulky. I looked at a GS3 and Note, and it's like carrying a brick around.
 
S

SomeDudeAsking

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 23, 2010
1,250
2
darster said:
I disagree. A 4 inch screen is a perfect size. I had the razr maxx, and the phone was too bulky. I looked at a GS3 and Note, and it's like carrying a brick around.
Click to expand...

But then look at the iPad Mini, it has 7.9 inch screen but Apple says you can use it one-handed.
 
P

paulrbeers

macrumors 68040
Dec 17, 2009
3,963
123
To each jos own. That's why there is more than one phone on the market. Frankly I had a droid x with its 4.3" screen and that to me was as big as I would want to go....
 
SpyderBite

SpyderBite

macrumors 65816
Oct 4, 2011
1,262
8
Xanadu
So, remind me why this is posted on an Apple forum instead of the Samsung or Android forums?

Glad you found a smartphone you enjoy. But it seems a meme to post about it here.
 
D

darster

Suspended
Aug 25, 2011
1,703
1
SomeDudeAsking said:
But then look at the iPad Mini, it has 7.9 inch screen but Apple says you can use it one-handed.
Click to expand...

It's not a smartphone. The iPhone 5 fits perfectly in my pocket. The bigger phones are clumsy to carry. You have a greater chance of dropping them. To each their own. Choice is a good thing.
 
S

SomeDudeAsking

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 23, 2010
1,250
2
SpyderBite said:
So, remind me why this is posted on an Apple forum instead of the Samsung or Android forums?

Glad you found a smartphone you enjoy. But it seems a meme to post about it here.
Click to expand...

Because I was an iPhone user and I also own a number of other Apple devices. Thought you guys might like to know why so many people are choosing Samsung instead of Apple: it's the screen.
 
S

stonyboys

macrumors 6502
Oct 16, 2012
323
3
I have always thought that 4 inches is the perfect screen size, ever since I saw the galaxy s2 by samsung. The iphone 4 looks ancient to me now, tiny in comparison. And the new galaxies and other androids look way too big to carry around in my pocket.

Also have you seen the blacks on the ip5 or are you talking about the ip4/4s blacks? Because the blacks on my screen are black as sh**, and dont look grey at all.
 
D

darster

Suspended
Aug 25, 2011
1,703
1
SomeDudeAsking said:
Because I was an iPhone user and I also own a number of other Apple devices. Thought you guys might like to know why so many people are choosing Samsung instead of Apple: it's the screen.
Click to expand...

And why so many are choosing the iPhone 5 over the GS3.
 
pgiguere1

pgiguere1

macrumors 68020
May 28, 2009
2,171
1,247
Montreal, Canada
SomeDudeAsking said:
But then look at the iPad Mini, it has 7.9 inch screen but Apple says you can use it one-handed.
Click to expand...

The iPad mini can be held with a single hand, unlike the iPhone which you can actually use with a single hand.

It's true that AMOLED displays display blacker blacks than any LCD displays, but the for the rest IPS wins hands down.

Colors on a GSIII aren't accurate at all. They're oversaturated. It doesn't mean most people wouldn't enjoy that though. Like a lot of people like colored bass-heavy sound on headphones like Beats by Dr Dre instead of flat-response real studio headphones.

Pick the one that looks the best to you, but factually the iPhone 5 (and 4/4S) have much better color reproduction than any AMOLED phone.
 
S

SomeDudeAsking

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 23, 2010
1,250
2
stonyboys said:
I have always thought that 4 inches is the perfect screen size, ever since I saw the galaxy s2 by samsung. The iphone 4 looks ancient to me now, tiny in comparison. And the new galaxies and other androids look way too big to carry around in my pocket.

Also have you seen the blacks on the ip5 or are you talking about the ip4/4s blacks? Because the blacks on my screen are black as sh**, and dont look grey at all.
Click to expand...

I'm taking about the blacks on all iPhones. No iPhone screen can produce true blacks because of the LCD backlight. Try watching a YouTube video in the dark and focus on the background. Compare it to any amoled screen.
 
R

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
SomeDudeAsking said:
My phone contract expired recently so I had the opportunity to renew. I went to the carrier store to pick out a phone they have in stock since I made a decision that the 5.5 inch screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note II would be a bit too big for day to day comfort. I had a choice of the top end smartphones from HTC, Motorola, Samsung and Apple.

I could have gotten any of the top smartphones for about the same price on contract. There were working demo models so I could play and compare. I narrowed it down to between the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3.

The thing that swayed me to the Galaxy S3 is the gorgeous screen. Comparing the iPhone 5 screen with the Galaxy S3 screen, the Galaxy S3 wins hands down. The size of the iPhone 5 screen at 4 inches was so small compared to the Galaxy S3 at 4.8 inches.

I loaded up YouTube videos, Google Maps, and Macrumors on both devices. It was striking how much more useable these apps/websites are with the extra screen space of the Galaxy S3. I could see more content and also with larger font sizes, which meant much less scrolling.

To add to my decision, the blacks on the Galaxy S3 are true black. One of the biggest things that has bugged me about the iPhone that I''ve had all these years is that it's screen can't render true blacks. For example, if you've ever tried watching a video on the iPhone screens, the blacks on it are actually grayish because of the backlighting that bleeds the blacks. This bugs me a tremendous amount.

I think the size and color reproduction of the Galaxy S3 screen are the ideal for what we should expect from a smartphone of today. There is no way I can ever go back to an iPhone screen after having used my Galaxy S3 for a week now.
Click to expand...

You do realize that the Galaxy S3 has abysmal image quality dimensions in everything except black quality right?

The iPhone 5 doesn't just beat it, it's like comparing a brick to a transsonic nasa prototype going so fast that they expect it's skin to start melting during a normal flight and require replacing.

The reason why Apple doesn't use Samsung's display technology is because it's less than half as bright, and requires much more battery power, which would destroy battery life and outdoor visibility.

4 inches is the ideal size to TOUCH with one hand, the iPhone also unlike all other phones has a hands free keyboard, this means that it is the only phone you can multitask with. Try typing on an iPhone with one hand, your character input will be gibberish but it will translate that into the correct words with nearly perfect accuracy.

If if bigger screen really makes you happy enough, then get it.
 
M

MassiveAttack

macrumors 6502a
Mar 28, 2010
658
1
New York
Unfortunately iPhone's screen no longer reigns as king as far as color reproduction, sharpness and PPI. I have to agree the SGSIII's screen looks absolutely gorgeous.
 
J

Jzo

macrumors regular
Oct 16, 2011
100
1
If the true black is anything like the true black on the Zune HD I know what u mean.
 
D

darster

Suspended
Aug 25, 2011
1,703
1
SomeDudeAsking said:
If you haven't noticed, people don't use smart phones for making phone calls very often. The smartphone generation text.
Click to expand...

Really? Guess you don't work in a business or professional environment. Once you do, you will realize just how important a "phone" is.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom