Quick Poll: Which Smartphone Display Size is Perfect for You

[dgstorm]

Here's a fun but potentially informative poll for your afternoon pleasure/edification. Since the display size of smartphones has shifted dramatically over the years to ever larger devices, we thought it would be useful to find out what you guys think is the optimum size for you.

We are only creating three categories for phone sizes to make it simple, but we will also add the usual "other" category for those who have tastes way outside the norm. After voting in the poll, please share in the thread what you chose and why.

Which is the perfect smartphone display size for you?

• 4" to 4.7"
• 5" to 5.2"
• 5.5" to 6+"
• Other

Note: obviously there are some rare phones with sizes slightly in-between these, but we figure you can lump those into whichever category seems to fit best.

 

[Gremlin]

5.5

 

[jstafford1]

5.2 seems to be the sweet spot for me. Can easily 9ne hand everything and it's plenty big enough for anything else I can think of.

 

[RyanPm40]

Definitely 5 to 5.2. I really love the size of my Galaxy S4, and 5.5-6 just feels huge to me.

 

[trestevenson]

The 5.2 of the G2 is the sweet spot for me.

 

[bsweetness]

5.5" to 6+" for me.

It might seem large at first, but after a week or so it feels normal and you won't want to go back to anything smaller.

 

[94lt1]

5.5-6 inches for me too.. With less and less bezel.. Even in an otterbox defender.. Its not too big.. For my hands..

 

[FoxKat]

Smaller hands, 5" is actually just a tiny bit too big but I can deal with it. The Turbo is the max I would go in screen size.

 

[FoxKat]

5.5" to 6+" for me.

It might seem large at first, but after a week or so it feels normal and you won't want to go back to anything smaller.

I have to respectfully disagree. To make such a statement is a generalization. Saying someone else will be comfortable with a particular size phone or that eventually it will "feel normal" is to make an assumption that even if their hands are larger or smaller it won't matter to them. There is no such thing as "one size fits all". The phone can't shrink, and your hands can't grow so it becomes a physical impossibility to use without two hands.

I tried to use the Nexus 6, a very thin bezel phone with a 6" screen, and found myself struggling to touch areas of the screen and operate it without using two hands. It's just not possible without risking dropping the damn thing. My fingers just aren't that long, my palm isn't wide enough to hold the phone and stretch to reach anywhere beyond about 4/5 of the width, and about 5/6 of the length of the phone.

I see plenty of people in the same physical size range as myself (5'6"), who have 5.5" to 6" phones but they are obviously struggling with their Phablets. The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 seems to be the one I see most often. They look so uncomfortable using it, and when there's an Otterbox on them, then they REALLY look humongous. However it seems to be some kind of status symbol perhaps, as well as perhaps presbyopia setting in that seem to be the big motivating factors for such a large phone. Also, obviously web pages and other things viewed are much closer to natural in size with such a large screen, but the physical size of the phone is not ergonomic, IMHO.

I also say that such a large phone looks really very odd when held to the face to make a call.

 

[bsweetness]

I have to respectfully disagree. To make such a statement is a generalization. Saying someone else will be comfortable with a particular size phone or that eventually it will "feel normal" is to make an assumption that even if their hands are larger or smaller it won't matter to them. There is no such thing as "one size fits all". The phone can't shrink, and your hands can't grow so it becomes a physical impossibility to use without two hands.

I tried to use the Nexus 6, a very thin bezel phone with a 6" screen, and found myself struggling to touch areas of the screen and operate it without using two hands. It's just not possible without risking dropping the damn thing. My fingers just aren't that long, my palm isn't wide enough to hold the phone and stretch to reach anywhere beyond about 4/5 of the width, and about 5/6 of the length of the phone.

I see plenty of people in the same physical size range as myself (5'6"), who have 5.5" to 6" phones but they are obviously struggling with their Phablets. The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 seems to be the one I see most often. They look so uncomfortable using it, and when there's an Otterbox on them, then they REALLY look humongous. However it seems to be some kind of status symbol perhaps, as well as perhaps presbyopia setting in that seem to be the big motivating factors for such a large phone. Also, obviously web pages and other things viewed are much closer to natural in size with such a large screen, but the physical size of the phone is not ergonomic, IMHO.

I also say that such a large phone looks really very odd when held to the face to make a call.

I thought the smiley at the end was enough to note that I wasn't entirely serious with my comment. Maybe I should have made it wink to emphasize that point a little more.

I'm very much of the same opinion that one size does not fit all. I'm glad that Android offers a wide range of sizes for users to choose from. For me, 5.5" - 6"+ feels normal. At one time it did feel large, just like the 4.3" Droid X felt large when it was first released. But after a short time, it no longer felt large in the slightest, just like the Notes or the Nexus 6. While larger 5.5"+ displays certainly aren't for everyone (even the majority of people), there are a lot of people who knock large displays without ever giving them a fair shot. I think that a number of people would quickly come to like having one if they tried it. Will everyone? Absolutely not. It's all about personal preference.

 

[FoxKat]

I thought the smiley at the end was enough to note that I wasn't entirely serious with my comment. Maybe I should have made it wink to emphasize that point a little more.

I'm very much of the same opinion that one size does not fit all. I'm glad that Android offers a wide range of sizes for users to choose from. For me, 5.5" - 6"+ feels normal. At one time it did feel large, just like the 4.3" Droid X felt large when it was first released. But after a short time, it no longer felt large in the slightest, just like the Notes or the Nexus 6. While larger 5.5"+ displays certainly aren't for everyone (even the majority of people), there are a lot of people who knock large displays without ever giving them a fair shot. I think that a number of people would quickly come to like having one if they tried it. Will everyone? Absolutely not. It's all about personal preference.

Well, then I suppose we are in agreement. The smiley face to me was simply an expression of your satisfaction with the phone and not in sarcasm regarding your one-size-fits-all type statement. So I appreciate the clarification.

 

[pc747]

6 inch if you have little to no bezel. I actually like the size of my Nexus 6 as it eliminates the need for a tablet.

 

[EyeOWA]

I like bigger screen phones. I have an S4 and seems small to me. Been looking at Nexus6 or Note4, but reluctant to give up UDP. When I got my S4, got comments that it was a huge phone. Don't see that, but to each their own.

 

[Str8Aro]

Coming from the Galaxy Nexus, I was reluctant to go to a larger screen but after checking out the LG G3, I bit. I like having more real estate for text display or for whatever app I am using. It is an advantage for aging eyes.

I was concerned about carrying a larger device around but that concern was unfounded - for me. I have adapted to carrying and using the 5.5" screen, quite well. It is likely the upper size that I would consider for my phone use.

 

[Dusty]

I like 5.5" on my OnePlus. To me it felt like a perfect fit in terms of both screen and body size. I have to be honest, the screen on my Nexus makes the whole body a bit too big. I can use it fine and I can one hand it 80% of the time, but it's at the the absolute limit of being comfortable for me--and I have big hands. Any larger in any dimension and I'd really have to think twice about it.