• by Steve Smith  @popeyesm, August 26, 2013

All rumors in advance of the less-than-secret unveiling of the high-end iPhone 5S and budget iPhone 5C in coming weeks point to Apple remaining entrenched in its 4-inch display. But recent sales figures from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech suggest that Apple may be behind rather than in front of the consumer curve when it comes to smartphone sizes. According to its figures for the 3 months ending June 2013, the share of Android phones sold with 4-inch to 4.4-inch screens plummeted from 61% to 29%.

The larger screens are attracting buyers at an accelerated pace. While only 9% of buyers of the Android platform purchased 4.5-inch to 4.9-inch models a year ago in the second quarter, 40% did so this year. Those wanting the even larger 5-inch-and-up slabs of phone hardware already constitute 15% of the market.

With its Galaxy line of larger phones with premium features, Samsung is the main beneficiary of this taste for big screens. The share of buyers of its phones with 4.5-inch to 4.9-inch screens was up to 48% in Q2.

As consumers come to rely on their smartphones for a wider range of online tasks, the tolerance and taste for bigger screens appears to be expanding.