Fall Phablets

[Ravynmagi]

There are two, maybe three phablets I'm interested in arriving this fall.

Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
Supposedly Samsung has moved up the launch date of the Note 4 to beat Apple out of the gate. We expect it'll be announced September 3rd. And will be a 5.7 inch phone with a 2560x1600 display and probably a Snapdragon 805 processor (but probably Exynos in some regions like before). I haven't heard of any new noteworthy features coming, just faster and higher resolution Note and will very likely have the fingerprint scanner like the S5.

Apple iPhone 6 Phablet.
This is iffy. There is a 4.7 inch iPhone coming almost definitely. But some say the 5.5 inch phablet may be delayed until next year. So not sure if we'll see this announced with it's little sibling in mid September. These phones will have sapphire glass that seems very tough and scratch resistant, more so than we've seen with Gorilla Glass. And of course either of these phones is a significant size improvement from the 4 inch phones of before.

Google Nexus 6.
Word is Motorola is making this new Nexus 6 phone and it may be a 5.9 inch phablet. probably a 2560x1600 display. But spec rumors seem to be all over the place so still not sure what will be inside. This will also be the first Nexus phablet. And likely it would be announced with Android L in later fall.


So hard to pick which one I'd want. I want the Note's pen, the Nexus' Nexi-ness. and the iPhone's apps. Hard to choose.

 

[quikah]

There is rumor that Miscrosoft will release a 1525 also.

 

[dawheat]

There are two, maybe three phablets I'm interested in arriving this fall.

Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
Supposedly Samsung has moved up the launch date of the Note 4 to beat Apple out of the gate. We expect it'll be announced September 3rd. And will be a 5.7 inch phone with a 2560x1600 display and probably a Snapdragon 805 processor (but probably Exynos in some regions like before). I haven't heard of any new noteworthy features coming, just faster and higher resolution Note and will very likely have the fingerprint scanner like the S5.

If the S5 LTE-A 1440p screen is any indicator, the 1440p screen on the Note 4 should be the best. Super sharp, bright, low reflectance, extremely color accurate, with the infinite contrast of AMOLEDs. Otherwise I assume being water resistant like the S5 as well as having a fingerprint scanner. Everything else is speculation - new pen tech, UV sensor, OIS, etc.

Apple iPhone 6 Phablet.
This is iffy. There is a 4.7 inch iPhone coming almost definitely. But some say the 5.5 inch phablet may be delayed until next year. So not sure if we'll see this announced with it's little sibling in mid September. These phones will have sapphire glass that seems very tough and scratch resistant, more so than we've seen with Gorilla Glass. And of course either of these phones is a significant size improvement from the 4 inch phones of before.

I'm curious how/what Apple will take advantage of the larger screen beyond simply more icons per screen. Probably same tech as the 4.7" with a higher clocked SOC. However I don't expect a sapphire screen or anything different hardware wise.

Same advantages that iOS has in general, but probably will be one of the larger phablets in terms of height/width due to Touch ID and the desire to have symmetrical bezels.

IMO the G3 is now a phablet in screen size and will remain the champ of being a compact phablet. None of these phones will come close to its bezels.

 

[vi edit]

If you want a stylus then it's a no brainer. The Note has much more function than other other phone of it's size. The stylus adds a whole new level of function.

It's up to you to decide how much value that really is. I've downsized from a Note 2 to a MotoX and there are times I miss the size (mostly in the keyboard) but really haven't missed the pen function. I just never used it nearly as much as I thought I would.

 

[Trombe]

Might see a G Flex 2 in the fall.

I considered the iPhone phablet for a little bit too but then I've thrown it out of the running, mostly because it's likely just going to be another case of "add another row of icons."

 

[isekii]

i like open~ can't do iphone
I'm betting it's going to start 16gb standard again then rape you next size up.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I'm curious how/what Apple will take advantage of the larger screen beyond simply more icons per screen. Probably same tech as the 4.7" with a higher clocked SOC. However I don't expect a sapphire screen or anything different hardware wise.

You are not expecting Apple to use Sapphire displays? To me that seems like a given. Apple built a big sapphire glass plant in Arizona and I think it's for more than camera lenses and buttons.

IMO the G3 is now a phablet in screen size and will remain the champ of being a compact phablet. None of these phones will come close to its bezels.

I think the G3 was a bit premature. It paired the 1600p display with a Snapdragon 801. It's good enough for that resolution. But it'll quickly be eclipsed by the Note 4's likely Snapdragon 805 which has the Adreno 440 GPU. G3 looks nice, but I think LG should have been a bit more patient.

The Note 4 probably won't have the slimmest bezel, especially if they do the silly water proofing (I hope they don't do that on the Note 4). But to me Samsung phones more efficiently use their bezels with buttons. Their bezels are pretty small and that required bottom chip that all phones seem to need because of the connector on the LCD panel, Samsung uses well with capacitive buttons, leaving the screen space available for screen space.

 

[s44]

I'd thought the latest rumor was that the i6 *wasn't* going to have sapphire glass... but I can't find that online. Perhaps it's already been superseded.

Anyway, here's another one, as LG decides to take its Samsung copying to the next level with the "G3 Stylus":
http://www.androidpolice.com/2014/0...le-galaxy-note-competitor-into-a-promo-video/

edit - huh, Engadget suggests that it may be a lower-end lowres device:
http://www.engadget.com/2014/08/05/lg-g3-stylus/

 

[Ravynmagi]

"Stylus" usually refers to a capacitive stylus. So I assume the LG G3 Stylus won't have a digitizer or digital pen like the Galaxy Note. Though I suppose it's still a nice idea to have a stylus built into the phone as well.

 

[s44]

I think it's more LG wanting to avoid the Samsung-associated words of "note" and "pen". Don't see how it could possibly make sense to have a non-active stylus as part of a device... unless the thing is Nvdia-based, which would admittedly be super cool.

 

[Red Storm]

I'm sure the Note 4 is going to be a beast, but I just didn't feel like waiting that long. Happy with the G3.

 

[luv2liv]

looks like lenovo is joining the 6inches crowd too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwmvrHgFHdk.
not sure what the size limit will be. but im guessing our pants will be the limiter (the nexus7 fits in my front jeans pocket fine). no way am i carrying a purse

 

[Ravynmagi]

looks like lenovo is joining the 6inches crowd too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwmvrHgFHdk.
not sure what the size limit will be. but im guessing our pants will be the limiter (the nexus7 fits in my front jeans pocket fine). no way am i carrying a purse

If it's shipping with a Snapdragon 801, I would hope that's a Summer phablet and not a Fall phablet, because all the other cool kids are going to have the 805.

Also I wonder if Lenovo plans to sell that outside of China. Lenovo has been making phones a while, none seem to ever make it to North America that I've seen.

 

[Ravynmagi]

And the rate the OnePlus One is going, it might not be until Fall before it's available to the public. Not that I'd want to buy that now or then.

 

[Raduque]

Disappointed that the Note 4 isn't going to have a bigger display than my Note 3.

 

[s44]

looks like lenovo is joining the 6inches crowd too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwmvrHgFHdk.

I guess it's too early in the merger process for that to be the body of the rumored Nexus 6...

 

[Commodus]

I'm really curious to see how Apple tackles a 5.5-inch iPhone (the latest batch of leaks pointing to a September 9th reveal also suggested that both sizes are coming, which makes sense).

If you believe the rumors, the larger model may be a *little* bit better beyond the screen size. You'd get a slightly faster version of the A8 chip and possibly optical image stabilization (as opposed to the software Apple has been using to date). Enough to help you justify buying the bigger device, but not so much that you'll regret "settling" for the 4.7-inch model.

As for software, I'm conservative. I can see Apple adding room for more icons, notifications and the like, but I don't see there being a fundamental shift in how iOS works on a larger display. That's not necessarily a problem, since I don't think many people do a lot of multi-window tasks on their phones, but it does mean there won't be a revolution. The main appeal is iOS + large screen... and yes, plenty of people are interested in that concept.

 

[jacktesterson]

If it's shipping with a Snapdragon 801, I would hope that's a Summer phablet and not a Fall phablet, because all the other cool kids are going to have the 805.

Also I wonder if Lenovo plans to sell that outside of China. Lenovo has been making phones a while, none seem to ever make it to North America that I've seen.

At this point, you will likely see 0 difference between the 800/801/805 in performance and all 3 will be out dated at the same time when that time comes.

Its like comparing a stock i5-2400 to a i5-2500 .

 

[s44]

At this point, you will likely see 0 difference between the 800/801/805 in performance

Incorrect. Compare the G3 to the S5 LTE-A: the 805 has enough GPU for 25*14, the 801 doesn't.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Yes, the Krait 450 core is a minor update over the Krait 400. So on the CPU side there won't be much difference between a Snapdragon 800/801 vs an 805. However there is a big difference between the Adreno 330 and Adreno 440 and a large GPU performance increase will be there, so with these 1440p tablets and phones, I'd really like to see them paired with a Snapdragon 805 (if not a Tegra K1).

 

[dawheat]

Incorrect. Compare the G3 to the S5 LTE-A: the 805 has enough GPU for 25*14, the 801 doesn't.

I assume this is only for 3D games right? So if you don't play games, I do think it's a pretty non-issue, though I'm sure the S805 has some power savings features that could be helpful.

I've actually been underwhelmed by Qualcomm - when the S800 first came out last summer in the G3, it was such a step forward in performance and power savings. It's been a year and the S805 will be their flagship SOC until next year. So for 18 months there will basically be no meaningful CPU improvement. Yes there is decent GPU improvement, but somehow I expected more for 18 months.

 

[jacktesterson]

Incorrect. Compare the G3 to the S5 LTE-A: the 805 has enough GPU for 25*14, the 801 doesn't.

2560*1400 on any typical phone screen is a waste of time.... Little difference at the cost of GPU. I suppose you're right as I forgot that the market is mental at times.

I guess I was just thinking CPU. Still think the Adreno 330 is more than enough for most.