4-inch iPhone Rumor Gains Credence

Well well, we might just see a jumbo-sized iPhone after all. First the Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was buying up larger screens for phones, and now Reuters has chimed in, stating that the screen size will be exactly 4 inches. The Wall Street Journal had been reporting that the screen would be “at least 4 inches.”

Beyond that minor disagreement, both news sources agree on providers and when the hardware will arrive. Both South Korean and Japanese display makers have been approached, so we can expect that at least Samsung will be providing a sample. Likely Apple also approached HTC’s display manufacturer, what with the One X having the best display on the market hands down.

The displays are for orders starting in June, which leads Reuters to speculate that production o the next generation iPhone might begin then. All this means that if Apple isn’t yet making a big phone, it is at least experimenting with one.

Apple has bull-headedly stuck to its 3.5 inch form factor even while every other phone manufacturer has creeped up in size. Apple touts that the smaller design lets the device be used with one hand, with the thumb being able to reach every corner of the screen.

Of course, when the iPHone was released, the 3.5 inch screen seemed big. There was even a bit of controversy over the size of the hands used in the advertisements making the phone look smaller than it actually was.

A production run starting in June would make the phone available sometime around September or later, which coincides nicely with the 1-year mark of the release of the iPhone 4S. That means that Apple might be getting back into the habit of releasing one new model yearly at the same time.

The Verge Photo by : William Hook