Apple considering iPhones with screens as big as 6-inches: Report

All these years, Apple has ignored the big-screen smartphone segment which is now close to becoming a standard for Android devices and is ruled by players like Samsung. However, a new report indicates that this could change in the near future.

The Wall Street Journal says that Apple is considering a plan to offer big screen iPhones. The publication cites people familiar with the matter to report that the company is introspecting whether it should offer screens ranging from 4.8-inches to 6-inches on future iPhones. However, the report clarifies that the two iPhones expected to be unveiled next week, the iPhone 5S and the low-cost iPhone 5C would not sport bigger screens, and are expected to have 4-inch displays as seen on the iPhone 5.

Although, the company could just be testing some prototypes, as mobile component suppliers indicated that Apple had already started testing larger screens for iPhones in recent months, the company is more open to change now than in the past, according to the publication's sources.

The sources further indicate that Apple has been particularly interested in a 4.8-inch screen, going by recent tests.

The report also confirms that Apple will launch the low-cost iPhone 5C with the premium iPhone 5S, in multiple colours and will begin shipping the two phones together. It also reiterates that the iPhone 5 successor will sport a fingerprint scanner. Apple is expected to unveil the new iPhone(s) at an event in Cupertino on September 10.

It's not the first time that the Wall Street Journal has reported about Apple testing large screen iPhones. In July, the publication, which boasts of a pretty good record when it comes to rumours around the Cupertino giant, informed that the company was testing larger screens for iPhones and iPads. It cited officials at Apple's suppliers to report that the company had asked them to supply prototype smartphone screens larger than 4-inches and screen designs for a new tablet measuring slightly less than 13-inches diagonally.

All these rumours do indicate that Apple has acknowledged that there's demand for devices across all screen sizes. However, it's difficult to predict if any of the new devices will eventually make it to the production line.

Apple's biggest rival, the South Korean electronics giant, Samsung offers devices in a variety of screen sizes and form factors, with its flagship device, the Galaxy S4, also near about the 5-inch point.

Apple started offering a 4-inch iPhone, the iPhone 5, last year, increasing the screen size by 0.5-inch compared to the one seen on previous phones like the iPhone 4S (LINK).