As just about every major smartphone maker gears up to introduce their own 1080p-resolution Android “phablets,” one platform that apparently won’t be getting larger screens with higher resolutions is Microsoft’s (MSFT) Windows Phone 8. According to Bloomberg, HTC (2498) canceled plans to build a large-screened smartphone with Windows Phone 8 “because the screen resolution would have been lower than competing models” – 720 horizontal lines instead of 1080. The company recently released the Android-powered DROID DNA with 5-inch 1080p-resolution display in a svelte chassis and had plans to “claw back share from Samsung Electronics Co.,” with a large-screened WP8 smartphone. But Bloomberg reports HTC concluded large-screened WP8 phones “wouldn’t be competitive against Android devices from HTC, Samsung and others.”
While there’s no standardized definition for what is a phablet and what is not, most people consider it to be a smartphone with a display of 5-inches or greater. Some firms such as ABI Research say any smartphone with a 4.6- to 5.5-inch display is a phablet. As you can see, the definition varies because a “large-screen” phone is completely relevant to an individual’s hand size.
Stepping back, we’re not sure why HTC thinks that a 5-inch WP8 smartphone with 720p resolution wouldn’t be good enough to compete with Samsung’s (005930) Galaxy Note devices, considering neither the Galaxy Note or Galaxy Note II have a 1080p-resolution display. The first tops out at 800 horizontal lines and the second, despite having a larger display, only has 720 horizontal lines.
Bigger is not always better. Also, it’s not like most people will be able to discern the difference in screen resolution, anyway.
