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Comment by NathanKP | Hacker News Reader

This is exactly how I use my tablet too. I use my computer all day writing code, so when its time to relax with some Netflix, or an ebook I grab my tablet instead. Its perfect for laying on the couch or in bed.

A phone definitely works in that case as well, but the tiny screen isn't as nice for reading and watching video. Not to mention by the end of the day my phone is usually mostly dead and its time to put it on the charger for tomorrow. So trying to use my phone in bed while its attached to a charger is annoying. The tablet meanwhile is charged up (and usually lasts a full week for me between charges, even during heavy Netflix usage).

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Its perfect for laying on the couch or in bed

not for everyone though, as it emits light, and that is not what your body wants late at night. See example HN thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7057575

edit: I'm simply indicating staring at a screen late at night might not be all that good for us humans. Downvoting this doesn't make it any less true.

I suspect you're being down voted because article is discussing the merits between 3 devices, PC's, tablets, and phones, with the conclusion that phablets are the win in the end (with some fairly feeble 'evidence'). The fact that all three affect some peoples circadian rhythm isn't overly valuable to the conversation. Form factor is the discussion, and you're talking about light sensitivity in insomniacs. Water is a solid at -30c at sea level is also true, regardless of whether people down vote me. And neither are relevant to the article or the discussion being had.

I've found that f.lux really helps with that. For iOS you need a jailbroken device though.

I dunno. I put in pretty long coding days, pretty much every day. The first thing I do when I get home is, turn on my desktop.

I loved my iPad when I first got it, but now it's relegated to an overly expensive kindle. I actually like to do things on my computing devices. Play (non-casual) games, do some stupid cat Photoshop, start a hobby project(right now it's a tower defense engine in the now defunct XNA). Tables can't support any of that.

Overall, I agree with the article.

Since the era of zoomable text on phones appears to be over, tablets have a bright future.

Why the frack do they keep doing that!?

The difference in screen size between tablets and phones is much less apparent now than it was 2 or 3 years ago.

Now we've got "phablets," which are bad at being phones (awkward and clumsy to carry around, and almost impossible to operate with one hand) and bad at being tablets (small screen for a tablet, inherently greater limitations on battery life)... ><

Yay?

Really? You sound like most tech journalists two or three years ago, when the original Galaxy Note came out. They were sure embarrassed a couple months later when they turned out to be completely wrong about how popular it would be.

Try getting out of the iPhone bubble for a while - you'll find that in the real world, phablets are not just something that you make fun of.

I don't have an iphone. I have an Android phone which is larger (65mm width) than an iphone 5, but decidedly smaller than a phablet.

My phone is just on the edge of one-hand usability (I can mostly manage it but sometimes things get pretty awkward) and I often wish I had something iphone-sized instead, but choice is pretty limited among smaller Android phones (they exist, but tend to be old/slow/etc).

People I know with phablets use them like tablets (almost always with two hands etc). That's fine if you want a small tablet, but it isn't really an adequate replacement for a traditional smartphone. They're just different things.

Have you considered that one-handed usability isn't a defining property of smartphones?

It's a pretty important one, though. I have a Nexus 4 and if not for the big price difference and the fact that I wanted a phone without a contract, I would've gotten an iPhone instead. And one of the primary reasons is one-handed usability, because that is the primary use case for me. If I can comfortably use two hands, and if I want to, I'll use my tablet...

Based on observing people use their phones (as well as personal experience using mine), I think it's reasonable to say that one-handed operation is important for many people in various common usage situations.

E.g., I see huge numbers of people standing on the train using their phone with one hand (while hanging onto a strap with the other) or walking down the street, using their phone with one hand (while carrying a bag with the other), etc.

Have you considered being less patronising?

I have a non-geek friend who has a Note. She loves it.

She's already used to having to charge her phone every night, because while her old phone might've lasted 2-3 days it was easier just charging it every night.

She holds it two-handed, portrait, to text and interact with facebook, and did with a smaller phone too because she can type much faster that way.

She's comfortable reading on it.

It fits in her pockets fine.

I prefer my Nexus 4 + Nexus 7 as an approach, but for a bunch of people, yes, yay.

Sure, and there will likely be a big market for 6" phones for a good while to come - at least until EEG/eye-tracking controlled smart glasses replace them.

That said, I don't want a 6" phone. My Nexus 5 is too big. Just a bit smaller, and I'd be able to use it comfortably one-handed. I'd go 4" over 5" if there was an option with the price and performance I want, though 4.3" or 4.5" is probably perfect for me.

I have medium-small hands, and the Nexus 5 is hard to use one-handed. I made a case for it out of carbon fiber, and that improved things slightly by adding a bezel that sticks out from the screen by 1 mm or so. Its height is also at the upper end of what I want in my pockets. Unfortunately, the iPhone 5S is the only current/recent high-spec smartphone I know of that's the size I want, and I don't like iOS. When is Sony going to offer the Z1f outside Japan?

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