Doing the math: Apple device pixels on parade

The new "Baby Dolphin*" iPhone 6 Plus will ship with a 1920 x 1080 Retina HD pixel display on a 5.5" screen. Compared and contrasted to a 7" iPad mini with Retina display, with its 2048 x 1536 Retina pixels, the Baby Dolphin compares favorably.

It offers approximately 66% of the screen space but in a form factor that enables you to send and receive phone calls as well as read books more comfortably. As a point of comparison, my 960 x 640 pixel iPhone 4S with Retina display offers just under 20% of screen space plus is noticeably thicker than the new unit.

Here's a quick rundown of some basic specs, using the 7" Retina mini as a benchmark. Only pixels are compared, and the pixels per inch count varies between devices:

Device Name: Screen size, dimensions in pixels, pixel count, and relative size to iPad mini with Retina display

iPad Retina mini: 7" 2048 x 1536 3145728 100%

iPhone 6 plus: 5.5" 1920 x 1080 2073600 65.9%

iPhone 6: 4.7" 1334 x 750 850500 27%

iPhone 5s: 4" 1136 x 640 727040 23.1%

iPhone 4s: 3.5" 960 x 640 614400 19.5%

* -- In case you're wondering where this nickname came from, TUAW editor Dave Caolo exclaimed that the iPhone 6 Plus was as "big as a baby dolphin!" when it first appeared during the keynote.