Key companies in the phablet space

Phablets, a cross between a smartphone and a tablet, are gaining popularity globally as consumers opt for bigger screens to perform multimedia functions.

Phablets, a cross between a smartphone and a tablet, are gaining popularity globally as consumers opt for bigger screens to perform multimedia functions.

Here are some companies that will likely benefit or feel the impact of the fast-growing phablet market, which analysts expect to quadruple in value to $135 billion in about three years:

Winners

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

LG Electronics Inc

Lenovo Group Ltd

Ion Audio managing director William Fortin displays the Ion Audio Guitar Apprentice. Users put their iPads into the USD 99 unit and with a free App can use the guitar as a teaching and performance tool. The frets on the guitar light up to show finger placement and there is room to plug the device into an amplifier. Getty Images

Ion Audio managing director William Fortin displays the Ion Audio Guitar Apprentice. Users put their iPads into the USD 99 unit and with a free App can use the guitar as a teaching and performance tool. The frets on the guitar light up to show finger placement and there is room to plug the device into an amplifier. Getty Images

Google Inc (GOOG.O) (Android software runs on most of these devices)

Nuance Communications Inc (NUAN.O) (develops Swype software for keypads, enabling easier text entry on larger screens)

Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O) (CPU)

Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) (CPU)

Potential Winners

HTC Corp

Huawei Technologies Co Ltd

Panasonic Corp

Sony Corp

ZTE Corp

Riding the wave

Chinese manufacturers, and their regional partners, are building a niche for themselves. The main players are:

Byond Tech Electronics Pvt Ltd (India) www.byondtech.com/

Cherry Mobile (Philippines) www.cherrymobile.com.ph/

Karbonn Mobiles (India) www.karbonnmobiles.com/

Micromax (India) www.micromaxinfo.com/

MyPhone (Philippines) www.myphone.com.ph/

NXG Labs Pvt Ltd (India) www.nxglabs.in/

Oppo (China) www.oppo.com/

Zopo Mobile (China) en.zopomobile.com/

On the sidelines

Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) (its Windows Phone software is only a handful of large-screen devices)

Nokia Oyj (NOK1V.HE) (its largest smartphone, the Lumia 920, has a 4.5-inch screen which puts it outside most definitions of a phablet)

Research In Motion Ltd (RIM.TO)

Dell Inc (DELL.O)