With bigger being the order of the day, smartphone makers like Samsung, Sony, HTC, LG et al seem to be taking the phablet route. Now, rumor has it that Samsung is working on a new 4.99-inch 1080p AMOLED screen for the Galaxy S4, which the company will allegedly unveil at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in 2013.

For the uninitiated, the CES is one of the biggest and most anticipated trade shows. The trade show will be held in the U.S. from January 8 to 11 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

According to the Korean Web site Asiae, Samsung is slated to take the wraps off a 4.99-inch AMOLED panel with 1920 x 1280 pixels at the impending technology event. Asiae also reported that this purported screen will be for the Galaxy S4. However, the site does not know when the device will hit the market.

It is not uncommon for companies to show off a screen and announce the device that sports it after several months. In Oct. 2011, Samsung demoed a 10.1-inch LCD with 2560 x 1600 pixels, and the device the screen made it to was the Nexus 10, which released this October.

Earlier in September, rumors surfaced that the Galaxy S4 would make its debut at the MWC in Feb. 2012. However, at the time, Samsung dismissed the rumors.

Many would wonder what is the logic behind introducing a Galaxy S4 within a year, especially when the Galaxy S3 (720p) is raking up sales and doing extremely well in the consumer market. The logic is simple, Samsung would look to take the 1080p route as that's what rival smartphone makers are doing. HTC's recently launched Droid DNA is 1080p and Sony too is supposedly working on two 1080p smartphones, the Xperia Yuga and Xperia Odin. Even China-based ZTE is rumored to have a high-end 1080p device in the wings, which will release in 2013.

With rival smartphone makers upping the ante, Samsung would need to pull out all stops to stay in the race and retain its status as the market leader and, therefore, the move would make perfect business sense.

Time will tell if all the speculations bear fruition and Samsung launches a Galaxy S4 in 2013. What features would you like in the Galaxy S4? With so many competing 1080p devices in the anvil, would you still stick to Samsung or opt for another company?