Source: Fox News

The evolution of the phone has been interesting to watch over the past several decades.We’ve evolved from large brick-like phones that ran on 1G cellular networks in the 1980′s, to the flip phone that began to emerge in the 1990′s running on 2G digital networks. The 2G technology employed the process known as circuit switching, which can be inefficient because it limits the number of connections while transferring data. Despite this hurdle, 2G digital technology was still better than the 1G cellular analog technology and is often credited for the rapid expansion of the mobile phone. Still, there was a lot of pressure in the mid-late ninety’s to have greater data speeds. I remember working for a wireless company in the late 1990′s / early 2000′s when 3G hit the scene. There was a lot of buzz about how superior the 3G technology was compared to 2G. Essentially, 3G began to utilize packet switching technology which improved latency and allowed for much faster speeds and more efficient data transfer. This high speed data transfer, allowed for the first time, the ability to stream media from your handset. This changed the game for mobile devices and started a wave of out of the box thinking on where the handset could go next. While 3G dominated the last decade it was eventually overtaken by the latest 4G technology that we all have become accustom to over the past few years. The growth of bandwidth intensive streaming had taken its toll and it became clear that yet again faster speeds were going to be needed. The 4G technology started to employ the all-IP or next-generation network (NGN), utilizing packet switching over the internet through LAN, WAN, and VoIP.

As the type of technology used by our mobile devices evolved from 1G to 4G so did our phones. What does this mean? This means that how our phones physically look in 10 years will depend largely upon what type of technology can be deployed for its use.

Recently, there has been a growing trend in the mobile phone industry to make bigger, more vibrant, and brilliant display screens. There is no doubt, that the explosion of high tech smartphones has played a primary role in this recent trend in order to fully maximize all the benefits this mobile technology has to offer.

So,how big is too big for a phone? For this, we turn to Kenneth Butler for his list on the top 10 signs your smartphone is too big.

Top 10 signs your smartphone is too big | Fox News.

1. People keep complementing you on your new iPad.
2. It came with a remote control.
3. You catch yourself looking for the volume controls on your waffles.
4. You’re suddenly awesome at arm wrestling.
5. You now wear a Bluetooth headset without feeling the least bit self-conscious.
6. Augmented reality apps suck you into another dimension.
7. You’ve convinced yourself that cargo pants are in again.
8. It takes two people to perform pinch-to-zoom gestures.
9. You phone’s browser keeps popping up ads on murses.
10. You couldn’t lose it if you tried.

For better or for worse, there are a growing number of new phones on the market that are larger due to a consumer demand for big, easy to read, easy to use, display screens. As mentioned above this demand has largely been driven by the type of technology available. So there you have it!