A few months ago, Samsung unveiled the biggest smartphone in the world - the 6.3-inch Samsung Galaxy Mega. Unsurprisingly, the phone has caused waves in the tech community - exactly how big is TOO big for a smartphone, and when does the device simply become a tablet? In spite of this controversy, the Mega 6.3 seems to have gained a certain degree of traction with smartphone users who want as much real estate on their phone as possible.

The Mega 6.3 looks practically identical to the Samsung Galaxy S4; truly, it looks like Samsung just took the S4 and tugged at the bottom and op, and made the Mega. That said, I'm still a fan of the design ascetic, and it lends a certain unilateral feel to Samsung's devices. One thing I hope Samsung will change in the future is that it'll make the display edge-to-edge, so that the device isn't quite as massive to hold in the hand.

As with other Galaxy devices, the Mega comes with the feature-packed TouchWiz UI. It runs the programs efficiently - there doesn't seem to be any more lag than there is on the Galaxy S4 (not that there's much on there either). The display, however, leaves something to be desired; the Mega only sports a 720p screen, versus the 1080p offering that comes with the S4 and most other high-end smartphones nowadays. Of course, the impact on the screen resolution is magnified on such a large device as this.

In terms of the camera, the Mega holds it own, at least for most pictures. It features an 8-megapixel scope, and a 1080p video recorder, the latter of which really looks beautiful. In certain low-light conditions, pictures don't come out very well on the Mega; in general, outdoor photos came out better than indoor ones. Still, if you're just looking for something to take decent quality photos which you can edit later if need be, the Mega will suit you just fine. (Besides, I highly doubt you're considering buying the Mega for it's state-of-the-art camera).

You might expect a phone this large to be too unwieldy to carry around with you. In reality, it seems like this just depends on your own preference; the phone can indeed fit in most pockets (not skinny jeans, though), but it's obviously going to be a tight fit, since you're a half-inch away from carrying a tablet around. Also, be prepared to get a decent number of bewildered looks from passersby as you stick this giant of a "phone" up to your ear to make a phone call. Yep, it's pretty darn big. In fact, you may as well just carry around the Nexus 7; after all, that's a high-quality device, and it can make calls too.

In the end, whether or not the Mega is for you really depends on your phone preferences. If you're looking for the absolute biggest phone on the market, then you've found your device. However, if you don't want to deal with carrying a near-tablet around with you all day, then obviously, the Mega probably shouldn't be your first choice. (If you want a more refined experience, you might want to consider checking out the 5.2-inch LG G2). All in all, though, the Mega is a reasonably high-quality device that has opened up new possibilities in the phablet market.