Phablets

Bigger is better, according to a new Juniper Research report that says phablets are destined to become even more popular over the next several years.

More than 400 million phablets will ship in 2019, five times the the estimated 138 million to be shipped this year, the report said. As such, phablets will account for more than 20 percent of mobile devices shipped in the next four years.

The phablet is defined by Juniper as a handset with a screen size of 5.5 inches to 6.9 inches that can be held while making phone calls -- but not necessarily for an extended period of time.

Big-screened smartphones have surged in popularity among consumers. That's one reason why Apple launched the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus last year -- to reclaim customers and market share lost to Android vendors.