Recent rumors have suggested that Apple’s upcoming 5.5-inch iPhone 6 will now launch alongside the 4.7-inch iPhone later this year. A larger 4.7-inch display may be the sweet spot for a lot of users on both iOS and Android, but 5.5-inches is definitely up there in phablet territory.
Unsurprisingly, mockups of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 have recently surfaced, and when compared to the 4.7-inch mockup or other 5.5-inch Android devices, it’s clear that this will be a massive iOS device. But how big is too big? If Apple plans to launch a device of this size, there are a few design changes that need to happen. Check out our comparison video for a closer look at the large 5.5-inch iPhone 6 mockup…
The main problem with this 5.5-inch dummy is that everything around the display is too big. I’m not talking about iOS though. These mockups just appear as if an iPhone 5s was put into Photoshop and proportionately enlarged. If Apple wants to make a sleek phablet, we need to do something about the spacing found on the top and bottom bezel.
Whether or not you’re a fan of the side bezels, the top and bottom portion of this mockup is what makes it unnaturally large. Even the LG G3 (which has a 5.5-inch display) is shorter than the 5.5-inch mockup. Even when compared to a new (and very large) Android device like the OnePlus One, this iPhone 6 dummy towers above it.
Check out our comparison video below:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg1jSoWsJAU]
The only way this device won’t look awkward is if Apple adjusts the design a bit. Of course, all of these mockups are based on rumors, but I think it’s safe to safe that this mockup design is a bit odd. Regardless of opinion, these different sizes are interesting to look at and compare, but hopefully not exactly what we’ll see later this year.
Check out the gallery below (click to enlarge):
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64gb oneplus one $350
64gb iphone 6 5.5 inch $850+
Yeah, and some people choose to eat garbage fast food full of fillers, msg and ammonia for dirt cheap or consciously choose to pay 2-3 times as much for relatively low-processed, organic ingredients they prepare themselves that aren’t full of poison.
For some people there’s more that goes into the value of the products they buy than just the price tag stamped on it.
I agree with you in the food convo but we’re talking about a company charging $100 for doubling hard drive space which costs them $5-10.
And some people are complete morons who compare paying a bit more to eat healthier to wildly overpaying for an ex-status symbol phone that is outclassed and does less than the competition does at half the price or less. What’s next the it’s the ‘BMW’ of phones argument? That comparison was true at one time but became false at least two years ago.
jorge, look up there. There’s the point of my analogy going right over your head.
Your argument is nothing but a reflection of your personal sentiment towards the iPhone, when the point of my analogy was all about people placing different values in the products they buy and determining what is more worth their money based on that. The iPhone being an overpriced status symbol that is outclassed by the competition is nothing but your personal opinion. What you failed to deduce from my analogy is that not everybody thinks you like and feels that way about the iPhone, that people find their own values in the product that perhaps you don’t see or understand. One could just as easily argue fast food is a better value on pricey organic food because the extra cost isn’t worth the relative lack of processing. Some people value the lack of processing and find it worth paying the extra money for, some don’t value that or even realize what that value is.
Why don’t you re-read that last sentence more carefully and look up the definition of an “opinion” in regards to your response before making childish insults at people you don’t even know.
to be fair @ tattooted yuppie it cost them more than 5-10 to double the harddrive space. They use something called SSD(solid state harddrive) – there are no moving parts which makes it much more durable, this is the most expensive type of harddrive available – in fact G-tech just came out with a 512 GB SSD external harddrive for 400 bucks so its not cheap stuff at all… at the same time you could get a traditional 2 terabyte toshiba for $100 so as cheap as it has become for the older harddrives SSD are very costly and still very new
With the iPhone you get :
a ton of free apps from Apple
free iCloud
guaranteed free updates for at least 4 years
iCloud is awful, it’s a bit better with the Yosemite developer’s preview, but on the whole, it’s horrible. Google Drive, Microsoft’s One Drive, and even drop box are way, way better. Plus, with Office 365, you’ll be getting a free 1TB of cloud storage along with it in One Drive (or 20GB free without Office 365). You get 5GB free with iCloud and that gets filled in a week if you backup your iPhone/iPad.
Apple needs to step it up.
Watch your order. Dropbox has the best sync experience, while Google Drive really performs poorly. And you said “even Dropbox”? I have not tried One Drive, but it is a MS product…Why trying? iCloud is the best choice for syncing between Apple devices because it is built in & most convenient, but not the one provides best sync experience when dropbox is available for the same task
I’m fine with them charging a bit more for the base phone than the competitors because I know I am paying for quality and reliability, however I must agree that the storage upgrades are a complete rip-off and that has always annoyed me as a long time Apple fan. The only upside is it means that I can sell the devices for more when I come to upgrade so I’m not really losing out in the end.
One will get updates to the OS for years and one won’t.
Apple, Android, BMW, Mercedes, etc… Let me say one thing here to stop the talk of over priced items. If a company makes record profits, can’t keep the devices on the shelves and has a MASSIVE demand and interest at all times, how is the item “over priced?” It isn’t. That is your misguided opinion. Because you find the android system more appealing has nothing to do with reality. Sure, Android is on some great phones. I personally have had both. iOS and the Apple ECO system work for me. Hands free work is of key importance to many. I can hold the button on my ear buds to send text, set location based reminders THAT WORK, call people, etc all with the phone in my pocket. Android is more open and makes sharing things easier such as pictures and other things. But let’s be honest. Apple iOS and Android both run apps. Apps run better on iOS. Even when an iOS App crashes, you are instantly at home screen and can restart app. Android phones are another story. There are actually facts that support latest versions of Android crashing less but really? How DO THEY crash is the question. Malware? Security issues? (Don’t mention celebrity iCloud mess either – NOT an Apple security issue.) How about when the iPhone comes out in a week or two and I sell my iPhone 5 for what it costs for a new contract… Basically get the new models for free as long as you keep them in good shape due to great resale value (ebay)… So HOW EXPENSIVE are they?? The big picture… Apple is #1 for a reason. Samsung makes cheap junk and doesn’t invent anything other than gimmick tech…
Biran Pex is right. Im not going to try explaining why apple products are worth a little extra. Ive used a note 2 and note 3 and a galaxy epic 4g and was not impressed with samsung or android. Bigger screens was great but that all changes today!
What the hell is a oneplus one for $350? Apple phones are priced the same as a galaxy note. Im not sure where this is coming from and iPhones have a ssd built in which is more than micro sd. Apple products are made of high quality parts, you get what you pay for.
I can’t believe Apple would make this. Those Bezels are huge. Surely the perfectionist that is Ive will not allow this. I know he has a lot to do with his new role but he would only need to take one look at that and say. Make these bezels smaller.
How do you make them smaller with the home button that houses Touch ID?
Put sensor under screen
Oh come off it, the Touch ID could fit in a smaller bezel. They could pull the sides in another couple of mil and completely shave the top bezel as it will only contain light sensor, proximity sensor, speaker and camera, which could easily be placed horizontally. Next to each other. This is lazy designing from Apple.
Just how would they put the sensor under the screen? I seriously doubt it could read a fingerprint through the LCD screen.
@Marshall
If you go http://www.patentlyapple.com, you will see that Apple has filed many patents regarding putting the TouchID sensor behind the screen. Whether we see it in the iPhone 6, or ever, remains to be seen but you will notice that Apple has been thinking long and hard about it.
The bezels are too huge to be done by Apple? Tell that to the iPad 1 through 4.
Those are old devices though. The iPad is also a different market and has different function.
I am with you here. That huge forehead bezel is pointless ….that is unless they need the added space for battery. And if that was the case, most of us would rather have a slightly thicker iPhone instead.
If this is the route Apple really wants to go for the 5.5, why not just put it in an iPad mini case and make the bezels even larger. The iPhone 6b
Let’s let the designers do their job and not question everything or think that armchair commenters know better than the people who actually MAKE the phone. Since the Galaxy and all the other phones seem to have a similar bezel, my guess is that it’s there for a reason.
The top and bottom bezels are a non-issue to me as they don’t get in the way of use of the phone. If anything, they even have some utility – if I’m watching a movie or something in landscape, I hold my thumbs over the bezels, not over the screen as I’d be more likely to if there were no bezels.. Side bezels are more of an issue, since the grip of the phone when in portrait mode and the reach of the thumb across the phone is harder if the bezels are too wide.
The bezels top and bottom and on the sides are waaaay too big, and make the phone too big in average hands, plus the overall design looking at the front of the phone looks like nothing more than a huge iPhone 5. Whatever happened to Apple’s famous innovative designs? Have they lost their way?
We want minimal bezels on the top and bottom, and preferably NO bezels or extremely minimal on the sides!!!
Hear hear,
What do we want: Smaller bezels
When do we want it: September, early October at the latest.
As far as I can tell, the bezels are no larger than those on the iPhone 4 and 5. The bezels of the 4 and 5 was certainly larger than the 6 in terms of a percentage of the front of the device. iPhone bezels aren’t getting larger so much as Android bezels are getting smaller.
Yeah, but iPhone 4 and 5 were designed years ago! If anything at all makes iPhone’s ugly are thick bezels. These are not the kind of bezels anyone would expect from the 8th iPhone.
Yes, every iPhone and iPad has a physical button at the bottom. And that needs a bezel.
And every iPhone and iPad has a bezel on top to balance the device so the screen is centered (in landscape mode) whether the button is pressed right or left handed.
– And on top of that, Apple is not promoting Touch ID which needs the physical home button on the bottom.
And AFAIK Apple’s fingerprint sensor is superior to those on Android phones.
– So, the iPhone 6 will have the same design as all the other iPhones and iPads and that includes a physical button and the bezels to go with it.
Edit to my comment which should read;
“And on top of that, Apple is NOW promoting Touch ID which needs the physical home button on the bottom.”
@bb1111116, I understand your point that Apple is just doing what they always do, but that makes the iPhone look so antiquated when compared to modern phones that are much sleeker looking. Those bezels are awful.
@thejuanald:
“Apple is just doing what they always do, but that makes the iPhone look so antiquated”
Here is a bit imo about Apple’s approach about design.
– Apple wants people to recognize an iPhone / iPad (even with a case) from 20 feet away.
In a crowded coffeeshop I can’t tell the maker of large Android phones from a distance whether it’s an LG, Samsung or Moto.
But I can quickly spot every single Apple device.
The button/bezel design is part of Apple’s trademark.
– And it has a value for non techies like my wife. At her work almost all her co-workers have iPhones. And they help each other with their phones which is easy because the iPhone design and OS doesn’t change that much.
– Apple target customer is the non techie. That is why their hardware and software is easy to use. And part of ease of use is to not change the look of the OS or the hardware too much year after year.
I agree with what you’re saying, I, being a techie, hate it though haha
@thejuanald:
Choice is good. My step bother and best friend use Android.
I have no problem with that.
Yeah I understand that choice is good, I was just saying that I hate some of the design elements Apple has. Some design elements are great, though.
@bb1111116 Good point about the screen having to be centred in landscape. I hadn’t thought of that but it would be a real issue if it weren’t centred.
i honestly still think these mockups are fake. i’m kind of hoping these are some elaborate troll by apple, because this design just does not feel right. nothing about it except the sleep button really makes sense. yes, my kb is busted, hence no caps.
The antenna bands are much more subdued looking in the 5.5″ mockup than in the 4.7″ mockup in the top picture. They actually look bearable in that particular mockup. The 4.7″ mockup has those thick ugly antenna breaks and the awkward looking camera hole we’ve seen too much of in the past two months. Not Apple quality when compared to the past aesthetics we’re used to.
Why are they avoiding a phone-to-phone comparison? iPhone vs Galaxy S5?
What is this website afraid of?
i absolutely refuse to believe that apple would make a phone that hideous.
I think the women and large handed people that switched to Android for the size now have a reason to come back. I think those people will not mind the bezel. All they want is a large phone with all the cooool apps. I for one will definitely be getting this phone. I like that it’s all metal. It will feel good in my hands.
Holding a smaller screen closer to your face can cause eye fatigue, less awareness of your surroundings, and neck strain.
A few maybe will go back, but most will not as once you are in a free and open ecosystem the limitations Apple users are used to become unacceptable.
For me, the term open means I can change the look of the UI and sideload pirated apps. I think if you left Apple for those reasons, you might not go back. I have an android phone and I put all the apps and mods in it. But my iOS devices are clean and legal. If it wasn’t for the iWatch, I wouldn’t be interested in an iPhone.
At least until half the the shit u try to do with your android doesn’t work or half assed at best. I bet u bump phones with your “bros” don’t you!
“open”
rofl
Google apps aren’t open.
evilsteven, you’re an idiot.
Alex, yes, google’s apps are open.
I’m free to install apps on my iOS device. Sounds free and open to me.
You’re not free to install apps that aren’t approved by Apple. Apple is the exact opposite of an open ecosystem, and that’s completely fine for a lot of people. They’ve built a walled garden that gives an easy experience on the user, and they’ve done a great job with that. Some (maybe a lot?) people don’t want to be told what they can and can’t have. It comes down to one group wanting a streamlined experience, and another group of people who want to tinker and do whatever they please with their phone. No group is right and no group is wrong.
I like to tinker but I depend on my phone working and working well. I had an android phone and I downloaded apps. It didn’t take long for the phone run horribly. I appreciate apple vetting the apps because they are much less likely to screw my phone up. There are times when I’m put off a bit if apple won’t let me have some app but overall their vetting process makes me very happy.
Face it – all phones reduce awareness of your surroundings.
I feel bad for people that will put a case on the 5.5″ phone. You’ll need to buy an Apple shoulder strap to carry that thing.
Ha ha ha #Classic
I’ve never stood in line for an iPhone, but I will if they release a 5.5″ device. No question. I know most people don’t want one that size, but there’s enough of us that do. I can finally stop carrying an iPad mini AND 5S.
I definitely hear where you’re coming from. I may be wrong, but I think over time the phablet will cannibalize the small tablet (7″ to 8″) space.
Yeah, I left the iPhone after my 4S and went with a Note 3 (5.7″) and I absolutely love the screen real estate. If/when Apple comes out with a 5.5″ screen, I will be torn as to whether I want to go back or not. I love the openness of Android, but sometimes things don’t work. Whether that’s due to my tinkering or a poorly written app, I’m not sure. With an iPhone, you get the wonderfully streamlined ecosystem but you’re not allowed to tinker. It would be a tough choice for me.
Why are we here debating over quality of a “mock-up”? I highly doubt the final model will have the same fit and finish as this mock up. It’s 100% a place holder ;)
There is a reason for people to use Android devices (or Win Phone).
You want small bezels, 7 inch tablets, no decent fingerprint ID? Go to Android. Please.
– FYI, Apple has a certain design style.
Look at the current iPhones and iPads.
Notice that all of them have a large hardware button on the bottom and a same sized bezel on top so the screen is always in the same location no matter which way the device is held.
– You don’t like that? Again, Apple mobile devices are not for you.
Hopefully, it’s not a real thing because it looks like crap!
I agree: too much space wasted on the upper and lower bezels. But since it’s a mockup based on rumors, let’s trust Apple’s design expertise for a refined final product (if it ever comes true at this size).
I’ll never get to like those antenna cuts on the back, no matter how polished the real iPhone is at the end. I still hope that changes when they reveal it on the fall!
The 5s looks gorgeous but the other model looks like coming from trash can…
IT IS A WELCOME NEWS THAT APPLE IS PLANNING TO INTRODUCE A 5.5 INCH IPHONE PHABLET AND I HOPE IT WILL HAPPEN THIS YEAR ITSELF.I EXPECT DRASTIC CHANGES IN THE IPHONE DESIGNS TOO.APPLE USUALLY INCREASE THE SIZE VERTICALLY AND I HOPE THE NEW PHONES WILL HAVE THE SIZE INCREASE BOTH VERTICALLY AND HORIZONTALLY
They are just stretching the phone design man!!! come on !!! who’s a fool to buy this shit !!! WOW !! lazy ass bitches man !!! One of the richest companies in the world saving money on the phone design man !!! if this is all true that better hire LG’s design engineers to help them build the next phone with class and no bezels !!!
It doesn’t make sence to me. How many people really want a 4.7″ phone, not to mention 5.5″
I was perfectly fine with the iPhone 4 size and got used to iPhone 5 size, anything larger than that just won’t look nice, Steve knew it. Also from a commercial point of view; iPhone has killed the iPod, why would they also want to kill the iPad mini?
Apple’s philosophy has been that if you don’t cannibalize your own product someone else will. So the question is why wouldn’t they want to kill the iPad mini, since the iPhone line makes up at least half of Apple’s business?
@ pheidon;
“How many people really want a 4.7″ phone, not to mention 5.5″”
* According to a US survey done by RBC Capital Markets 64% of iPhone customers who will be buying a phone in the next 3 months want either the 4.7″ or 5.5″ iPhone 6.
More specific results from the US survey done by RBC Capital Markets about people who will be buying an iPhone in the next 3 months ON CONTRACT.
– 5.5″ screen $299 – 26%
– 4.7″ screen $199 – 38%
– iPhone 5S $99 – 21%
– iPhone 5C $0 – 15%
If rumours are true and it’s only the 5.5″ that will have sapphire glass that’ll be a game changer for me … It’s going to be a great feature to have. ( I know that wasn’t talked about in this article, but it’s still related )
With regard to weight and size, the iPad mini is best for reading books or newspapers or to go into the internet (I don’t know the Air). I love Apple products. I love the thought of having so much iPhone in my hand. But for me a 5.5 inch iPhone is senseless. It’s still to small to read whatever really satisfactory and let’s don’t forget what it mainly is: a phone! Making a call by holding a 5,5 inch device to your ear looks silly and crazy for me!
I wish they make one size near to 4,7 inch, strike!
You “love the thought of having so much iPhone in your hand”?
Scary. Do you also collect guns?
Size does matter ;o)). No I don’t collect guns.
Touché.
I just hope the “smaller” model won’t be missing any feature apart from the extra inch, as I would never buy a phablet. In this case Apple should only give an extra choice to the big-screen lovers, without damaging the “classic” iPhone users.
People take the new iPhone only due to the lack of choice. With exchange New to last year Model.
To renew the contract is often the only possibility for a lot of people. To give $300 for a new device, the middle class cannot any more.