
Why Are Android Smartphones Bigger Than the iPhone? - barredo
http://daringfireball.net/2012/01/why_are_android_phones_bigger
======
joebadmo
Looking at the teardowns of the GSM Galaxy Nexus and the LTE Galaxy Nexus
[links below], it doesn't really seem like the size of the LTE chip makes a
meaningful difference.

The power/battery requirements seem more likely to be a factor, esp. since by
Gruber's own admission, Android handsets were getting bigger before LTE was
released. Also, the biggest phones, like the 4.7" HTC Titan, aren't LTE (and
the Titan is actually a Windows Phone 7 handset).

I think the battery is definitely a factor, and the different stock batteries
for the GSM and LTE Galaxy Nexus devices speak to that. But I think the most
likely or biggest factor is just that it's the most obvious way to
differentiate from the iPhone. The usability of different size devices is
debatable, but those huge screens really look great in the showroom.

The most likeliestest explanation, though, is that it's a combination of all
of these things, plus the fact that they're stuffing more and more stuff onto
the phones, like NFC chips, barometers, and front-facing cameras.

[http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Samsung-Galaxy-Nexus-
Teardown...](http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Samsung-Galaxy-Nexus-
Teardown/7182/2)

[http://www.zdnet.com/photos/cracking-open-the-samsung-
galaxy...](http://www.zdnet.com/photos/cracking-open-the-samsung-galaxy-
nexus/6334161?seq=30&tag=photo-frame;get-photo-roto)

------
ddlatham
Some Android phones are bigger, some are not.

One of the advantages Android has over the iPhone is that it can go after many
segments of the market, and manufacturers will choose various factors to
differentiate themselves. One of them is size.

------
zobzu
Or it could just be that browsing the web, viewing videos, etc, is more
enjoyable on a bigger screen.

Now, bigger doesnt mean 6", but the ~4" thin smartphones seems to be a very
good compromise to me. Yes, my hands are small.

