APPLE is all set to celebrate its decade old journey with major revamps for its iPhone 8. We have been updating all rumors that we have had our hands on to for past several months and this time again we are back with some more confirmed news, and information from our industry’s reliable sources.
There have been multiple upgrades in pipeline for iPhone 8. Starting from glass body to bezel less design, OLED displays to Touch ID fingerprint, there’s lot to expect from the celebration variant of iPhone. As far as the display size is concerned, according to what we have got our hands on to, APPLE will be going with standard 4.7 inch, 5 inch and 5.5 inch variants.
Sneak Peek Features:
iPhone 2017:
2017 marks the 10th anniversary for APPLE and the company is all set to celebrate this year with some massive upgradation to iPhone8. We have been hearing a lot of rumors since as early as the launch of iPhone 7, about the expected features and changes for iPhone8. There have been reports telling multiple prototypes being tested by APPLE for iPhone8 model and even though we aren’t yet there still we can safely predict that there’s going to be a fanatic redesign for iPhone8. This includes bezel-less full display front panel, OLED display and integrated home button (yes there isn’t going to be any physical home button).
What we have secured about front panel is that APPLE is integrating front camera, Touch ID Fingerprint and Home button into display. Moreover, it is going to be Glass body instead of metal Uni-body (this is also important if APPLE is to introduce true wireless charging).
Talking about the display design, we are quite sure that APPLE’s going for bezels-less full body front panel, what we don’t know is whether APPLE will shrink its display size or not (we are hearing a 5.5 inch or larger display for at least one variant). Moreover, APPLE is finally aiming to incorporate OLED display (getting over LCD). This was highly anticipated by tech community and it seems APPLE has finally paid a heed to it. Going for OLED screens will also allow APPLE to designing thinner and more battery efficient iPhone8 with enhanced contrast and colors. Another major shift that we have been hearing of (though we aren’t confirmed for this) is the curved screen like Galaxy S7 Edge.
Lastly, talking about the body material, we are quite sure about plastic being the preferred material unlike Aluminum that have been used from iPhone 5 to iPhone 6S. As per Catcher Technology (APPLE supplier) the glass body will be built around stainless steel or aluminum frame.
Naming: iPhone 8 or 7S?
Seeing the naming pattern APPLE preferred for its devices, we know that company likes to add “S” during odd years to corresponds to internal feature updates. However, given the fanatic redesign and feature upgradation, we are quite sure that APPLE isn’t going to name its new device “iPhone 7S”. It is highly anticipated that APPLE will skip iPhone 7S in favor of “iPhone8” for its new 10th anniversary model.
What you should remember is that iPhone 8 is only a tentative name that is being associated with the new iPhone device for 2017 and that no official statement have been released. There’s all possible chance that APPLE decide to give its latest device some more dramatic name by moving away from number series or anything else.
Workers from APPLE’s facility in Israel, where the work on 2017 iPhone model is underway call this iPhone 8, however there haven’t been any official statement about naming scheme for 2017 iPhone.
Design
A more intrinsic look into the expected design for 2017 iPhone reveals radical changes from stereotype iPhones we have seen all past years.
The first and foremost change is the use of glass body over Aluminum metal bodies that the company has been suing since 2012. Glass bodies aren’t new to iPhone and they were used back in days till iPhone 4S. Use of glass bodies might raise some eyebrows for it being more fragile than metal, however, given the advances in glass technology this shouldn’t be of much concern for APPLE. Glasses like corning gorilla glass have proven to be sturdier and durable against major shocks and so there isn’t anything to bother here. What’s more interesting is the use of OLED displays against LCDs, that we are used to see in iPhones. There has been far cry from experts and tech gurus about switching to OELD display, which is pioneered by Samsung in its flagship devices. In fact, tech gurus were expecting use of OLEDs for iPhone 7 already, which obviously didn’t materialized. Finally, use of OLED panels for 2017 iPhone will help APPLE to design thinner design with efficient battery consumption. According to Kuo, APPLE will be using stainless steel or aluminum frame to whole glass body in place and house other components.
As far as the display size is concerned, there are multiple rumors circling the market. As per some rumors, APPLE is going to launch 3 versions for its 2017 model with a “premium” OLED model and two other base models with sizes of 4.7, 5 and 5.5 inches.
Coming back to glass being the preferred material for 2016 iPhone, Mr. Horng and Mr. Kuo both have corroborated that we are going to see at least one glass body variant for iPhone 2017 that may be backed by one or two aluminum body variants. However, there have been some sort of disagreement in industry about the possibility of glass body fo iPhone 2017, as according to some other sources, all three variants of iPhone 2017 may come in glass bodies.
Lastly, we have some rumors from Barclays; according to their research, APPLE is going to launch two variants of iPhone 201 (5 inches and 5.5 inches). According to the website both variants will come in bezel-less, curved display and will boost an OLED display.
Display
Though there are many disagreements over the display APPLE is going to use in iPhone 2017, there are strong evidences on the use of flexible OLED display in at least one variant of iPhone 2017. This claim is backed by the fact the APPLE has already signed an agreement for OLED displays production (Samsung being the producer), which are going to make their debut in 2017 iPhone.
As per the contract, Samsung will be producing 20 million AMOLED panels on monthly basis for APPLE in 2017. Moreover, Samsung will be the sole supplier of AMOLED screens to APPLE, at least for 2017. This is again backed by the fact that other AMOLED suppliers like Sharp, AU Optronics and Japan Display aren’t yet there to start production of AMOLED panel, making Samsung the sole reliable supplier of AMOLED displays available to APPLE. This also means that restraints in production of AMOLED panels may affect the supply line of APPLE and thus have its influence on its decision to go on with traditional LCD display in at least one or more variants.
Nonetheless, APPLE has been making huge investments with other companies like AU Optronics, to work out other production options for Micro-LED and AMOLED panels. Other APPLE suppliers are also gearing up to start yielding AMOLED panels in forthcoming years.
Getting to some benefits of OLED panels over traditional LCDs, these panels are known for their true colors, rich contrast and battery efficient. Also, since there isn’t any compulsion for backlighting with OLED panels, APPLE will be at liberty to reduce their design thickness and weight. Moreover, the flexibility of OLED panels also is an added trait that can be used to great effect for designing an intriguing curved design (just like we have seen for Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge).
Not to forget the enhanced contrast, improved visualization angles and truer colors that OLED panels bring along, adds to the effectiveness of OLED displays. The only problem that has been consistent with OLED panels is their lower durability than LCDs and their vulnerability towards water damage. APPLE will need to overcome these issues, if it really wants to maximize profits for 2017 iPhone.
Processor
APPLE will be using its latest and fastest 10 nanometer A11 chip for 2017 iPhone. TSMC has already shipped first A11 chip for validation to APPLE and has secured sole supplier position for A11 chips.
Other Features:
Apart from above mentioned upgrades, there are numerous other changes that we are expecting from iPhone 2017. Among them wireless charging, Biometrics, Taptics and Cameras are some avenues that are expected to be upgraded for latest iPhone.
Pricing:
We haven’t heard any rumor about surge in iPhone 2017 pricing and are betting on nominal increase (if any) as compared to iPhone 7. This means that until now iPhone 2017 is expected to cost around $650. However, the larger storage size and upper models can cost as high as $850 or even more.
Release date:
There are strong indications in market that APPLE is going to release its latest iPhone 2017 in early September this year.
Though there isn’t any official date for its release yet, this is one thing that can be strongly rumored, as APPLE has preferred to stick with its release schedule over the years.
Just to remind, all iPhones (apart from the exception of iPhone SE) since the launch of iPhone 5 way back in 2012 have been released in September. So, we don’t have any strong reason to expect any surprise at least as far as release date is concerned.
Overall, iPhone 2017 seem to be an exciting, fresh and welcome launch in smartphone industry that have been somewhat stagnant for past many years. Though not much is confirmed until now, we will keep you updated on any latest leaks that we secure in coming days. Till then we can continue our fantasies for anniversary model iPhone 2017.