As has happened and will happen with many other fashions, trends and innovations, the concept of phablets It was controversial at first, but it is becoming more and more popular: we have not only become accustomed to the fact that high-end smartphones have adopted the standard of the 5 inchs (and even seem willing to get over it), but even devices with computer screens 5.5 inches or more are increasingly in demand.
20 million devices sold 5.6 inches or larger
A couple of months ago we discovered that the 20% of smartphones sold had been phablets, under the broadest definition of these, which counts all smartphones of more than 5 inches. The truth, however, is that the acceptance of this measure (very infrequent when the term became popular less than two years ago) makes many resist considering devices such as the Galaxy S4 or Xperia Z (responsible for a good part of those sales) as such.
The data that we know today, however, prove that even the largest phablets, those of about 6 inches, are already a sales success, with 20 million units in 2013 and forecasts of more than 100 million units for 2018. The figures are even more interesting when we consider that some of the larger devices were launched at the end of the year (such as the Lumia 1520) or in only some regions of the world (such as the LG Flex, which is only now beginning to reach most markets), in addition to not counting 5.5-inch smartphones, such as the LG Optimus G Probut from 5.6 inches onwards.
Manufacturers continue to bet on phablets and their flagships could continue to grow
Although we do not know if these forecasts of more than 100 million units will be fulfilled within 5 years, there is no doubt that manufacturers will continue to bet on phablets in the near future (we already have news of new devices from from LG y Nokia, for example) and that fewer and fewer seem willing to give up this part of the market, as shown by Apple is going to launch a version of the iPhone 6 with a 5.7-inch screen, by all indications.
Even more, if in 2013 the 5 inches became the standard size for high-end smartphones, in 2014 it seems that we could attend a new jumpNews of bigger screens has come from virtually every successor to last year's flagship devices. We do not know if these rumors will be confirmed but it has been speculated with minimum 5.2-inch screens (the size of the LG G2) both for him Galaxy S5, as for the X, and, of course, the LG G3.