My hope is for an alternating fall/spring release schedule. New flagships for the large and extra large market every September/October, and a new medium sized phone built around the same innards in March/April.
"Small" designation deliberately omitted. That's what I'd call the iPhone 1 through 4S, but it doesn't seem likely that we'll get any new ones.
Exact same situation here. Portability is much more important than an immersive experience for my use. Many people spend a lot more time on their phones than me though. I only use mine when on the move and would much rather be on a laptop once settled.
I love my N6, and if anything i'm afraid the PixelXL will be too small for me. I take comfort in knowing that the N6 can be a bit cumbersome at times.. despite me loving it, so maybe the XL will be perfect.
I'm not looking forward to stepping down from a Nexus 6 to a smaller screen. But then I'm a 6'3" dude. Phones under 5" screens feel like toys to me now.