Apple Watch May Push iPhone 6 Plus To New Heights

by Andy Faust

March 23, 2015

Apple’s new wearable hardware could eventually become much more than just an optional accessory – eventually, it could be one half of a Voltron-style combo that makes up the bulk of our computing life, relegating the tablet and smartphone model to the past. Just like a tablet/smartphone combo was a common duo over the past few years, a smartwatch/phablet duo could be the optimal setup for working on-the-go in the future. …

While Apple doesn’t reveal specific details on the iPhone 6/6 Plus sales mix when it announces iPhone numbers each quarter (or even split between the current generation and previous ones, for that matter), Apple CEO Tim Cook did say during the company’s most recent earnings call that the iPhone 6 was outselling the 6 Plus during the last quarter. I’d argue that the Apple Watch will be the bump needed to switch that around for the coming generation of new iPhone devices, because so much more can be done on the wrist, which affects the basic mechanics of carrying a large device in a big way.

Ever since I started caring about Apple Watch, this has been my exact plan for the next iPhone hardware revision. Had I been paying better attention last September, I probably wouldn’t even need to wait. But I picked iPhone 6 on the general premise I’ve always used to choose my smartphones: the capability to reach all on-screen controls with a single thumb on a single hand.
I was a fan of the original iPhone’s display size for that reason, and I even scoffed at the iPhone 5’s elongated screen. I was — and I remain — a hardline advocate of one-handed mobile use.

Now, though, that’s precisely the domain Apple Watch itself is entering. It’s not just a one-handed device, either — it’s a one-finger device, and it’s been designed from the ground up to be as lightweight and simple as possible. The iPhone no longer needs to be easy to use in its old one-handed way, and I feel like mine would serve me better a little bit bigger, as a bona fide two-handed type-center in my front right pocket. Ever try to research, write, edit, link up, and post a blog entry from mobile WordPress inside Safari? I have, and trust me, that extra inch of screen would be a lifesaver.

That said, I’m not convinced this new setup will be ideal for most users. One could easily make the same sort of argument in the opposite direction, that Apple Watch eliminates so much clutter and minutiae that an iPhone once looked upon as straddling the line of too-small-to-use now becomes a lot less of a nuisance, simply because users use it so much less frequently. And remember, iPhone 6 Plus comes at a not-insignificant $100 premium over iPhone 6, and many folks simply haven’t got the pocketbook or the pocket space to handle something that large.

I think Apple Watch will help Apple sell more big iPhones, certainly. But I also think it’s going to help them sell even more of the little ones.

And who knows? An iPhone mini might be the biggest blockbuster of all.