Author: Munro Stewart

Could Apple release a smaller and cheaper mid-range 5.4" iPhone in 2020, or even 2019? Here’s a theory for why, when, and how Apple might release a 5.4″ iPhone as a smaller and cheaper mid-range device to replace the iPhone 8 at about the $649 price point, but which could also be not too much larger in size than the 4″ iPhone SE.

Good Thing, Small Package

I wonder if Apple could announce a surprise 5.4″ iPhone in September 2019 with about a 1602 x 740 pixel screen at 326 PPI. It would be a smaller version of the 6.1″ XR, just like the 5.8″ XS is to the 6.5″ XS Max, and it would be physically not too much larger than the iPhone SE. [Link]

The inspiration for this article comes from the above thought I wrote previously on my website and social media. John Gruber from Daring Fireball made my day by taking the time to respond, pointing out that such a device would be unlikely to be released in the fall of 2019. I most certainly agree with this. Yet here I am anyway, thankfully inspired to write a few more of my thoughts behind the possibility of a 5.4" iPhone, including why, when, and in what form Apple might release the device.

It would be delightful if they did, but that seems impossible given how leaky the supply chain is.

— John Gruber (@gruber) September 6, 2019

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Here are the potential names I would use for a new disc-less or all digital Xbox.

Predicted

• Xbox One S All-Digital Edition
• Xbox One E
• Xbox One D - For "Digital"
• Xbox One Digital

As far as what they are likely to call it, I think Xbox One E is certainly a possibility. One of the reasons is because that is the name they used for an updated version previously, the Xbox 360 E. As long as they still like that scheme, they could stick with it. I am aware that it has been rumored to be called Xbox One S All-Digital Edition, so that is very likely as well. I just wonder if there is a possibility of that name being more of  a behind the scenes full name, and they go with a simpler brand name at retail for customers. Probably not, but you never know.

Suggested

• Xbox One T
• Xbox One R
• Xbox One E
• Xbox One TV
• Xbox One Tiny
• Xbox One Small

I like the simplicity of using single letters for different products in a product line. Plus, Microsoft has been using that type of branding for both the Xbox One S and Xbox One X, as well as the most recent versions of the Xbox 360 S and Xbox 360 E. So it makes sense to stick with the single letter naming scheme for this version as well, instead of using a more full name like the rumored "All-Digital Edition", or the previous Arcade and Elite of the 360.

I like R better than E because it is commonly used for higher end devices and they are not yet using that letter for any Xbox One device. Using letters like A, C, E, G might typically be thought of as lower tier devices. Using letters like R, S, T, X might typically be thought of as higher tier devices. So basically, I'd go with R because it sounds cooler and is still a letter less than S and X, which are higher end devices and already in use. Or I'd go with T because it might sound even better than R, and could denote the longer name of Tiny or TV, similar to how the current S could denote the longer name of Small or Slim.

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Here are the prices and features I'd put in the new 2019 iPad and iPad Mini products.

Why

• Keep the existing budget iPad in the lineup for a low cost device
• Put a bit newer technology in the other entry level iPads to make them desirable
• Raise the prices a bit if needed for a bit newer technology
• Include laminated display and thinner chassis because it's important
• Price iPad and iPad Mini only slightly different, not a much cheaper Mini
• Keep the old design with Touch ID to keep costs down some still though

Prices

• iPad 9.7" - 2018 - $299 32 GB, $399 128 GB
• iPad Mini 7.9" - 2019 - $449 64 GB, $549 256 GB
• iPad 10.5" - 2019 - $499 64 GB, $599 256 GB

Features

• Same Design - Touch ID and Bezels
• Similar Display Sizes and Resolutions - 7.9" and 10.5"
• Thinner Chassis for iPad - Like Mini 4 and Pro 10.5
• Laminated Display - And Anti-Reflective
• A12 Processer
• 3 GB RAM
• Apple Pencil Gen 1
• Touch ID Gen 2
• Wifi 802.11ac
• Bluetooth 5

Android phone makers should make budget phones with 5.0" 1440x720 displays for one-handed use.

I wonder if Apple should have released an affordable, mass market $99 home speaker assistant first instead of the expensive HomePod, similar to what they did with Apple TV.

For an equal and consistent UX, iOS should make a long press on older devices work absolutely everywhere a 3D Touch hard press works.

I still think that the app switcher in iOS should show icons instead of screenshots, and either have a scrolling horizontal list of icons or a scrolling vertical list with icons to the left of the full app names, instead of displaying one screenshot at a time.

I wish there was a setting to automatically sync between 2 iOS devices which apps I have installed and their location on the home screens.

It sounds like Google has aquired much of HTC's hardware team and some non-exclusive IP in their latest 1+ billion deal. But I also read that HTC will likely continue on with a new phone separately, using the HTC brand name. So this might mean that Google isn't going to use the HTC name for a product, and may not have acquired the rights to the brand name. This makes sense, as they have now branded their smartphone and some other hardware products as "Pixel". Before that, they had used the "Nexus" brand name for many products.

Back in 2012, it sounded like Google did a similar but slightly different type of acquisition with Motorola. That deal was worth 12+ billion, and they acquired the hardware team and IP. But I believe they also acquired the brand name, and the entire Motorola company, in that much bigger deal. However, they haven't kept the brand name, and did not use it on many products. I believe Lenovo later bought the rights to the Moto and Motorola brand names along with some other assets in a deal with Google.

Missed Opportunity

I find it interesting that Google ended up not using the Motorola brand name, and selling the brand name to Lenovo. And with this smaller HTC deal, it sounds like they again won't be using the brand name in their large purchase of a fairly prominent hardware company's assets. Just like Moto, HTC is a hardware brand that has actually been around for a very long time, going back to Microsoft's Pocket PC mobile OS.

I wonder if Google missed an opportunity when making their decisions to buy HTC and Motorola. HTC may not be a strong enough brand name. But Motorola, and their nickname brand Moto, were and are very strong brand names. So much so, that Lenovo purchased Motorola and its name from Google. And they even decided to keep the brand name and ditched its own brand name for the Moto phones. It sounded like they originally thought they would go with "Moto by Lenovo", and even decided against that to just use Moto by itself as the brand name for Moto branded phones.

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From a user perspective I think that any audio, music, or radio apps or websites like Play Music or Spotify should not have any video ads, only audio ads.

I wonder if Microsoft should rename Windows 10 S in the future to just Windows 10, and Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Plus. Have Windows 10, Windows 10 Plus, and Windows 10 Pro.

For consistency, I think the iPad app folders should only have 4 apps across in landscape mode too.

At iOS 10 I still think that switching from folders with 16 apps and 4 columns to folders with 9 apps and 3 columns in iOS 7 was one of the worst UX and design decisions ever on iOS.