Report says Japanese panel manufacturers working on ultra-thin 6 inch screens for Q3

According to those omnipresent Taiwan-based component suppliers, some Japanese companies are betting that by later this year, the typical high-end smartphone is closer to 6 inches in size, up from the 5 inches that has been seen on many top-shelf models. Phones like the HTC DROID DNA/Butterfly, Samsung Galaxy S4, and the Sony Xperia Z all have 5 inch glass. Some, like the Samsung GALAXY Note II and the LG Optimus G Pro (outside of Japan) all have gone over the 5 inch threshold. The current record is owned by the Huawei Ascend Mate and its 6.1 inch screen.

The Taiwan component makers say that two Japanese companies, Panasonic and Sharp, have been working on ultra-thin 6 inch displays for large sized smartphones. These are expected to be on new phones as soon as the third quarter of this year. Last year, Samsung sold 8 million units of its GALAXY Note series. The current version of that phone, the Samsung GALAXY Note II has a 5.5 inch screen while the next iteration of the phone is expected to carry a 5.9 inch glass. Acer expects global sales of more than 10 million large screened smartphones this year, ranging in price from $399 to $499.
 
According to the Taiwan based component suppliers, the 6 inch size is one that is not yet mobbed by competitors as the under 5 inch category is for smartphones and the 7 inch size is for tablets.

source: DigiTimes