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Here's Why Apple Didn't Give The iPhone 5 A Jumbo-Sized Screen

In Apple's promotional video for the iPhone 5, lead designer Jony Ive points out the obvious: "For the first time ever we've increased the size of the display."

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Instead of measuring 3.5-inches diagonally, the screen now measures 4-inches diagonally. Apple didn't increase the width of the phone, just the height.

In the lead up to the announcement of this phone there were a lot of leaks, so people who were paying close attention knew Apple was going to make a taller phone.

iPHone 5
Screenshot

This annoyed some people. Our resident dinosaur Henry Blodget, for instance, was furious Apple didn't plan on making a jumbo-sized phone like the Samsung Galaxy S III.

The reason Apple didn't build a jumbo sized phone is because it believes those bigger phones are uncomfortable for users.

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It doesn't come out and say that directly, but in the promotional video for the iPhone 5, Ive says, "By making the screen taller, but not wider, you can see more of your content, but still comfortably use it with one hand."

The not so subtle message: Holding the 4.8-inch screened Galaxy S III in your hand sucks.

In case you missed it the first time, later in the video Scott Forstall, the Apple executive that leads iOS says,"In portrait mode, iPhone 5 still fits so comfortably in your hand."

So, that's why Apple made a taller, but not wider phone. It thinks the wider phones aren't comfortable for users to hold on to.

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