Phablets are the future

[PatNY]

A column at Barron's yesterday discusses a new report by Barclays' Asia-based mobile technology analysts which says that phablets are sweeping the globe and will be the biggest area of growth in the coming years. The report predicts 70% compounded annual growth, which would mean an increase from 84 million "phablets" sold last year to 402 million in 2015.

From the column:

The early winner in the phablet wars is Samsung Electronics (005930KS), the authors write. Samsung’s “Galaxy Note,” which is on its second iteration, is perhaps synonymous with the term in many people’s minds, as reports this morning indicated the device may be on track to sell 10 million units by the end of this quarter ...

... the key in the coming battle will be the display technology, given that it greatly affects battery life ...

Among the outcomes of such a battle are “more bad news for the PC/Win8 industry,” perhaps, as “The growth of phablets represents a potential increase of cannibalization of other data-consumption devices, especially NB PCs, in our view.”

The other impact is that Apple will have to offer a larger screen on future iPhones than the 4-inch display on the iPhone 5, perhaps in 2014.

Until then, Samsung will dominate the phablet market ...

It should be noted that this particular report considers phablets to include any screen size from 4" to 8" which is broader than the definition usually used (4.5-5.5").

While Samsung and Apple will likely be the two dominant phablet makers in the future, I would think that both Google and Amazon will have a strong presence in this market as well. At any rate, it's where the future is at. Samsung's new S4 reportedly will have a 5" amoled screen. And some are predicting the iPhone's move to yet another larger screen size as soon as this year.

--Pat

[DiapDealer]

But I already have a ph. Will they sell an addon ablet?

Phablet. Here's to hoping that silly moniker dies a quick, quiet death.

[ucfgrad93]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Phablet. Here's to hoping that silly moniker dies a quick, quiet death.

Agreed. Karma to you good sir.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

But I already have a ph. Will they sell an addon ablet?

Phablet. Here's to hoping that silly moniker dies a quick, quiet death.

But before it does, let's riff on it.

I want the Phab 4, with customizable Ringo tones. It never requires updates, you just Let It Be.

[holymadness]

Originally Posted by PatNY

It should be noted that this particular report considers phablets to include any screen size from 4" to 8" which is broader than the definition usually used (4.5-5.5").

Well then, it is a pretty useless report.

[Apache]

Originally Posted by ApK

But before it does, let's riff on it.

I want the Phab 4, with customizable Ringo tones. It never requires updates, you just Let It Be.

Apache

[teh603]

Hopefully it'll phail like so many other cheesy monikers.

[PatNY]

Originally Posted by holymadness

Well then, it is a pretty useless report.

And why is that? Everything said in the article covering the report made perfect sense to me.

--Pat

[murraypaul]

Originally Posted by PatNY

And why is that? Everything said in the article covering the report made perfect sense to me.

Because it includes 7" tablets, which have never bern considered phablets anywhere else.
We know that 7" tablets are selling very well, so it just muddies the water as to how well actual phablets are doing.

[PatNY]

Originally Posted by ApK

But before it does, let's riff on it.

I want the Phab 4, with customizable Ringo tones. It never requires updates, you just Let It Be.

Hehehe ... and how about one with a screen you can view here, there, and everywhere ... and a battery that lasts eight days a week?

--Pat

[PatNY]

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Because it includes 7" tablets, which have never bern considered phablets anywhere else.
We know that 7" tablets are selling very well, so it just muddies the water as to how well actual phablets are doing.

But people can and do make calls on 7" tablets which is why I think they include them in their category.

Even if you want to exclude 7" tablets, and just consider phablets using the narrower definition, I think the story and conclusions would be pretty much the same.

--Pat

[exscentric]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

But I already have a ph. Will they sell an addon ablet?

Phablet. Here's to hoping that silly moniker dies a quick, quiet death.

I have a 4.2 Samsung and could go with calling it a fablet cuz it is truly fabulous.

[Logseman]

We're seeing now 5 inch screen with Full HD screen resolution. That makes for impressively readable and impacting content if you can keep the backlight in check.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Because it includes 7" tablets, which have never bern considered phablets anywhere else.
We know that 7" tablets are selling very well, so it just muddies the water as to how well actual phablets are doing.

Right. And it seems to include 4" devices, which are called "smartphones" everywhere else, and also sell very well.

Personally, I would only only consider a "phablet" to be a device larger than the majority of smart phones, and smaller than the majority of tablets, otherwise, why make a distinction? You're only referring to a union of all devices, not a distinct class of device.

Also, if using a 7" device as a phone makes it a "phablet" then my desktop computer might as well be called a "phesktop" because I make VOIP calls on it as well.

[shanghaichica]

I have a true phablet (original note).