Phablets are now the fastest growing market segment

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is probably the most well-known example of what we now call phablets: half phone, half tablet. They're criticized for being too big to hold comfortably as a phone, too small to be a usable tablet with a screen large enough to watch media or read ebooks.

So why are they getting to be so popular? From Gigaom:

In less than three years, "phablets" have gone from a laughable name to the fastest growing handheld segment and they're not done yet. Look for nearly 200 million shipments this year alone as consumers see the value in a larger screen with voice capabilities. ... This year alone, [research firm IDC] thinks phablet shipments will rise 209.6 percent from last year alone with 174.9 million big-screened phones shipping in 2014. Part of this year's growth would be boosted by the introduction of a 5.5-inch Apple iPhone, widely expected to launch next week. In 2018, IDC figures 592.9 phablets will ship, accounting for 24.4 percent of all connected devices that year (connected devices include traditional smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktops).

[Ed. note: I've got the Note 3 and love it.]