Report: Pace of Phablet Growth to Hit 18.1 Percent by 2021

According to a recent report released by IDC, the pace of growth of phablets (smartphone devices with super size display screens) will reach 18.1 percent four years from now. Meanwhile, by that time, the growth rate of the total smartphone market is expected to be at 3 percent. Furthermore, at least half of the total volume of shipments of Apple’s iPhone devices will be of the phablet kind. As pointed out by Ryan Reith, an analyst at IDC, half a decade ago the share of phablets was only at a humble 1 percent of the total smartphone shipment volume. This year, that percentage has since grown to nearly 50 percent.

It is safe to say that the future is increasingly looking to be one that is ruled by big screen devices. This should not be so surprising -- part of what makes phablets so appealing is the consumers’ need to consume multimedia in all its forms (movies, TV shows, sports, apps, games) via mobile devices. And the world’s biggest names in mobile and tech are only eager to help keep feeding that hunger by offering smartphones with generous screen real estate. Indeed, just about every flagship handset being released right now has its own Plus or XL variant. Some brands are even going as far as fully embracing the bezel-less approach to design, most notably Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8, Apple’s iPhone X, and LG’s V30, in order to optimize screen space.

IDC is also projecting that for 2017, Apple’s iPhone X and Plus models will grab 41.2 percent of the total shipment volume. And 2018 will likely see more super high end smartphones being released in the market, and accordingly, the prices of flagships will undoubtedly be on the rise. Indeed, this year has already produced the most expensive iPhone model ever (the iPhone X, with a starting price of a thousand bucks), and as more and more phablets dominate the market, spending among mobile users will also be increasing. As explained by Anthony Scarsella, a research manager at IDC, flagship offerings from Samsung, Apple, LG, and Google have already pushed the high end beyond the $850 pricing level for the first time ever, and it appears that this will continue in the next few years. 

Interestingly, consumers may still buy these phablets in droves despite the significant bump in costs. Of course, wireless carriers will try to lure them by offering device financing schemes and trade in deals.