iPhone 7 release date, news and rumors
By John McCann 6 days ago Mobile phones
Everything you need to know about Apple's new iPhone
iPhone 7 what we want to see
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IPHONE 7 RELEASE DATE, NEWS AND RUMORS
Update: We may have seen our first glimpse of the iPhone 7 in the flesh along with more evidence of a larger camera sensor, while Stuff.tv has gathered some iPhone 7 Plus intel that could offer big hints as to what to expect in the larger variant.
Just as some of the rumors speculate, unearthed renders of the iPhone 7 Plus appear to lack a headphone jack. While we won't know for sure if Apple has officially dropped 3.5mm jack support, the latest evidence doesn't look good for those of us who are unwilling to ditch the standard.
 |
| new iphone 7 release |
Next up, the iPhone 7 Plus render features a Smart Connector port, much like what's found on the iPad Pro and iPad Pro 9.7. Although the latest bit of potential iPhone 7 info lacks the Smart Connector, it's tough to say at this point whether this proprietary port will show up on the smaller device or not.
Original article follows below...
Looking for something smaller? Then you'll want to check out the iPhone SE? While the iPhone 7 Plus should cover all your big screen needs.
With the iPhone 6S, Apple delivered its best handset yet, but aside from sporting some fancy new 3D Touch technology, it was also very similar to the iPhone 6.
That was to be expected – after all, Apple typically only overhauls its handsets once every two years, but that overhaul is due with the iPhone 7, so we're expecting and hoping for big changes: think a whole new design, piles of power and a bunch of new features.
The leaks, rumors and reports are already ramping up, although the iPhone 7 probably won't arrive until late 2016. We've collected all the latest from around the web and beyond for you below, to give you the clearest picture possible of what you can expect from the new iPhone.
Fancy Android? Here's our full review of the Samsung Galaxy S7
In a rush? Get the latest iPhone 7 news in our video roundup below:
Cut to the chase
What is it? Apple's next all-new iPhone
When is it out? Likely September 2016
What will it cost? Probably the same as the iPhone 6S
iPhone 7 release date
If we were betting people, we'd say the iPhone 7 will probably arrive in September 2016. Apple tends to stick to a schedule and the last few iPhones have all been launched in the month of September.
But according to a 'reliable source' Apple might actually bring it to market earlier. Sadly, how much earlier is unclear, but it will take a while to even finish development and manufacture of the phone, so we wouldn't expect to see it before mid-summer. September is still the best bet for now.
iPhone 7 design
Hottest leaks:
A super slim build
Water resistance
Redesigned antenna lines
The iPhone 6S looked a lot like the iPhone 6, but it's likely to be all-change with the iPhone 7. Exactly what form that change will take remains to be seen, but there are some rumors.
iPhone 6S
For one thing, it could be even slimmer than the 7.1mm-thick iPhone 6S; Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities reckons it'll be dropping to between 6mm and 6.5mm thick. That sounds unnecessarily slim to us, especially as it could cause the battery life to take a hit, but the Samsung Galaxy S6 is only marginally thicker at 6.8mm, so it's possible.
If TSMC makes the chips, as has been rumored, then some space could be saved, which might help Apple slim it down without making sacrifices in other areas, while another report claims Apple will use fan-out technology to save space and reduce the thickness of the iPhone 7.
Slimming down the iPhone 7 could mean Apple will have to ditch the bulky 3.5mm headphone jack. That could lead to a great dependence on Bluetooth headphones, but another leak suggests there will also be a pair of special Apple earbuds included in the iPhone 7 box.
If Apple ditches the headphone jack, you'll want to check out these DACs
iPhone 7 headphone jack
Don't ditch your headphones just yet though, as an image supposedly showing iPhone 7 circuitry has emerged and the 3.5mm jack is intact in it. Removing the jack could do more harm than good, especially in the short term, so we doubt it will happen.
Another rumor suggests the iPhone 7 will have an all-metal design with a bezel-less display. It would be a big change for the iPhone design, but bringing in a new kind of screen technology would be a sensible move for Apple.
iPhone 7
The iPhone 7 could be built to last too, as according to Mac Otakara there are a number of iPhone prototypes with "ruggedized" features, which could mean a water and dust-resistant phone is on the way.
In fact, that's exactly what we'll get according to a supply chain source. Yet another suggestion of a waterproof iPhone 7 comes from the Apple supplier Japan Display. The supplier has come up with a new technology called "Pixel Eyes", that is now in its second generation and makes it easier to use the screen while you have wet fingers.
That's always an issue with waterproof phones such as the Sony Xperia Z line, so the fact Apple's main supplier is looking to stop the problem may be a big hint at what the iPhone 7 will do.
However, another report has suggested Apple will opt for a slimmer phone rather than a waterproof iPhone 7. Apple will likely get a new LCD display technology as well, which could allow the iPhone 7 to be 1mm thinner than before.
A design tweak rumor which will likely please many is that Apple will ditch the camera bump which has been present since the iPhone 6/6 Plus - with the firm going for a sleeker finish on the iPhone 7. As well as being totally flat the back could also be uninterrupted, as the same report points towards the removal of the antenna bands.
That tallies with an image leak picked up by Nowhereelse.fr, which claims its snapshot shows the iPhone 7 to have no antenna bands and a larger camera.
iPhone 7 LEAK
No antenna bands and a bigger camera? (credit: Nowhereelse.fr)
A few days after that, a leak of the iPhone 7 chassis design showed a new design for the antennas. So it increasingly seems Apple may sort out one of the more controversial elements of the design of the iPhone 6S.
iPhone 7
However, the overall size and shape of the iPhone 7 may not change much, as a sketch complete with dimensions shows it as being the same length and width as the iPhone 6S, as well as having similarly curved corners. That would be surprising for a new numbered model though and the sketch could easily be a fake.
iPhone 7 leak
A purported photograph of the back panel has emerged on MobiPicker, showing the phone in gold with a rounded design, antenna lines at the top and bottom and a new camera module, which could be a laser autofocus. The image is likely a fake, but the general design is largely in line with rumors so it could also be the shape of things to come.
iPhone 7 leak
In fact it's also very much in line with a newer image which seems to show the back of the iPhone 7 itself. It looks like it could have been manipulated, but with most design rumors lining up it could still be close to the truth.
iPhone 7 render
A render, based on supposed technical drawings of the phone, has also surfaced. According to GSMArena the colors and materials may differ slightly in the finished phone, but the placement of the ports, buttons and camera should all be accurate. It's in line with other leaks, though as it's an unofficial render it should be taken with the usual pinch of salt.
iPhone 7 case leak
But just as everything was lining up a leaked case prototype threw it all into question, with four speaker grilles when we're only expecting one or two. As it goes against everything else it's probably fake, but it could certainly make the iPhone 7 a media powerhouse.
iPhone 7 screen
Hottest leaks:
A sharper screen
An edge-to-edge display
The iPhone 7 could be in for a big resolution jump if a DigiTimes source is to be believed, as Apple is apparently likely to move to glass-on-glass screens, which in turn opens up the possibility of a QHD or even a 4K display.
A lot of Android phones already have QHD screens, and the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium is 4K, so it's possible that Apple will pump up the resolution of its next flagship, but given that the iPhone 6S isn't even 1080p we're skeptical that it'll get anywhere near 4K.
If the iPhone 7 does get higher resolution it might get bigger too, especially as rival phones are growing in size all the time. We're not convinced though – we'd still bet on seeing 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models.
iPhone 6S
Then there's the first image of the LCD backlight on the iPhone 7. It comes from trusted French blog NoWhereElse and shows the panel from the iPhone 7 up against the iPhone 6S.
All the connectors are in different locations around the phone, suggesting there will be a few design changes on the next iPhone.
A jump in resolution might not be the only way the iPhone 7 imitates Android though, as there's also talk that it could switch from an LCD display to an OLED one, much like Samsung uses on most of its phones.
One new rumor suggests the iPhone 7S will be the first Apple phone to feature an OLED display. The rumor comes from Apple telling supply chain sources that it will be switching from LCD panels to OLED panels in the next couple of years.
Sadly it doesn't seem like the technology will be here in time for the iPhone 7 and we'll have to wait for the iPhone 7S. That said, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has dismissed the rumor, arguing that Apple won't likely switch to AMOLED before 2019.
On the other hand it's now been reported by the Chinese Wall Street Journal that Apple has ordered 100 million 5.5-inch AMOLED panels for a 2017 iPhone. So all we can say with any certainty right now is that we won't see an AMOLED iPhone this year.
There's also talk of Apple taking a leaf out of Samsung's book and opting for a 5.8-inch curved AMOLED display on a future iPhone, although this could be something for the iPhone 8 rather than the iPhone 7.
Hopes of an edge-to-edge display on the iPhone 7 have been raised slightly after an image appeared online claiming to show just that - although having seen hundreds of iPhone leaks over the years we think this offering looks rather fake.
iPhone 7 LEAK
Will the iPhone 7 get an edge-to-edge display? (credit: Weibo)
The iPhone 7 screen could be hard to smash, as an Apple patent has been unearthed showing bumpers which burst out from the edges of the screen to ensure it doesn't touch the floor when dropped. Patents often don't turn into products, but you never know – and it would certainly be nice to see a stronger screen.
3D Touch is bound to make a return, though it's likely to be improved in some way, perhaps by enabling you to scroll through the previews of content you 'peek' into, rather than just having static previews.
iPhone 7 rivals
The iPhone 7 is likely a way off yet, but many of its main rivals have already launched. The biggest ones are the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. Both of these phones have received five star reviews on techradar - which we hadn't previously given out to a phone for two years - so Apple has some serious work to do.
Check out our full reviews of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
The HTC 10 looks to be a worthy alternative to Apple's handset too. Coming from HTC it's as stylish as you'd hope and the audio quality is a cut above.
Check out our full HTC 10 review
HTC 10
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There's also the 4-inch iPhone SE which has arrived with a palm friendly size, 6S specs and an affordable price tag. For those looking for a phone which is manageable in one hand, this is the one you want.
Check out our full iPhone SE review
Apple iPhone SE
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iPhone 7 camera and battery
Hottest leaks:
A dual-lens snapper
No more camera bump
A larger battery
Apple overhauled its camera tech for the iPhone 6S, replacing its old 8MP snapper with a shiny new 12MP one and boosting the front-facing camera up to 5MP.
iPhone 6S
Given that Apple tends to stick with camera components for a long time we wouldn't expect to see a change in megapixels for the iPhone 7, but there's a good chance it will have performance tweaks and additional features to help set it apart. For one thing the standard iPhone 7 may get optical image stabilisation, as well as the larger iPhone 7 Plus.
A shot of the rear of the iPhone 7 from Nowhereelse.fr suggests the camera lens will be bigger. Images that allegedly show machining plates used in the making of the iPhone 7 have been shared by HDBlog.it and further point to it having a larger sensor.
It doesn't seem to be a dual-camera lens (that's thought to be reserved for the iPhone 7 Plus), but it looks much larger so may mean some big improvements on the camera tech.
The benefit to the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 of not having a dual-camera system is that a smaller lens could remove the camera bump while still packing in plenty of tech.
As for the battery, it was one of the greatest failings of the iPhone 6S, so we're really hoping for some improvements here. Sadly, though, if the phone does slim down further as is being rumored there's not much hope of a big juice pack - or is there?
A recent leak suggests that Apple will increase the battery size in the iPhone 7 while reducing the handset's thickness. If that's true, then great, but we're not holding out much hope.
iPhone 7 OS and power
Hottest leaks:
A hexa-core processor
3GB of RAM
iOS 10
The iPhone 7 could be in for a huge performance boost, with whispers on Weibo that the phone will pack a hexa-core A10 chip, up from just a dual-core processor in the iPhone 6S. We're skeptical that Apple would go for that much of a jump, but it's an exciting thought.
We're not likely to see any more RAM in the iPhone 7, as Apple only just pushed the iPhone 6S up to 2GB, so it will likely stick with that for a while yet. However, the iPhone 7 Plus may upgrade to 3GB of RAM to account for its dual-camera image processing.
3GB of RAM is big jump in a short amount of time for the new 5.5-inch iPhone 7. The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus just got 2GB of RAM seven months ago, and the 1GB of RAM had been three generations strong in iPhone 6, iPhone 5S and iPhone 5.
As for the OS, we'd expect to see the iPhone 7 land with iOS 10, since we're up to iOS 9 on the iPhone 6S. That's likely to include improvements to Siri, an Apple Music redesign and a standalone HomeKit app, among other changes.
iPhone 7 other features
iPhone 6S
Hottest leaks:
A pressure-sensitive home button
Wireless charging
A smaller headphone jack
While the iPhone 7 is largely expected to look similar to the iPhone 6S it could be a very different beast on the inside, as according to CNBC, the Economic Daily News reported that the iPhone 7 will be "more complex" to manufacture than any previous iPhone, suggesting there could be a lot going on under the hood. What exactly we'll get remains to be seen, but a number of possibilities have been rumored.
We could be in for a redesigned home button, as according to one source it won't be a button so much as a sensor that you just have to place your finger on. The same source reckons that it might also be pressure-sensitive, so presumably if you press harder something different will happen, such as it taking you to a different screen.
A whole slew of possible features are apparently in testing for the iPhone 7, with five different prototypes being used to test multi-Force Touch tech, a dual camera, wireless charging, a fingerprint scanner in the screen and a USB Type-C connector that's compatible with headsets.
That all comes from a post on Chinese social networking site Weibo, but even if it's true given that there are apparently five different prototypes much of this may not make it into the final phone.
In other rumors, the iPhone 7 could have a smaller headphone jack than the iPhone 6S. We're hesitant to call this a feature, as it's more a likely annoyance which could be necessary in order to further slim the phone down.
There's an Apple patent which points to a 2mm connector, down from the standard 3.5mm headphone jack found on most phones. That would certainly help Apple slim the device down, but would also mean you'd either need special headphones or an adapter. Fortunately a newer leak suggests the iPhone 7's headphone jack won't be changing after all, which is good news as far as we're concerned.
iPhone 7 Smart Connector or no Smart Connector?
One of the weirdest iPhone 7 rumors is that it might have a Smart Connector like the iPad Pro range. On Apple's slates this allows for the connection of a keyboard, which seems an unlikely fit for a phone, but it's possible that one could be used to connect headphones if the 3.5mm headphone jack really is ditched - something which itself seems unlikely.
iPhone 7 Plus dummy
So far there are conflicting rumors on whether or not it will have a Smart Connector. The first we heard of it was from supply chain sources who revealed a dummy iPhone 7 Plus unit to Mac Otakara. As you can see in the image above it has three tell-tale Smart Connector dots at the bottom.
A few weeks later the same site came back and said that Apple had "shelved" plans for a Smart Connector port on its next phone.
iPhone 7 dummy
But that wasn't the end of the story. Since then another dummy has popped up, this time from an anonymous tipster at MacRumors. The dummy is likely of an iPhone 7, rather than an iPhone 7 Plus, as you can tell from the smaller camera, and once again there's a Smart Connector present.
It could easily have been faked and even if it wasn't it's possibly an old dummy from back when Apple was apparently considering it. A Smart Connector on the iPhone 7 is still possible, but we'd say it's unlikely, as it never made a whole lot of sense to begin with.
iPhone 7 cost
There aren't any price rumors yet, but in all likelihood the iPhone 7 will cost roughly what the iPhone 6S currently retails for. That would make it $649/£539/AU$1,079 upwards.
Though if Apple finally ditches the 16GB model the starting price might be even higher.
iPhone 7 release date rumours, new features: Case maker 'reveals' that iPhone 7 will have quad speakers | More leaked photos: Antenna redesign, laser auto-focuser | No-bezel design
iPhone 7 rumours are flying, and we've picked up lots of hints about new features that could appear in the iPhone 7, from wireless charging to a touchscreen with built-in Touch ID. It's believed that Apple is going to ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack, and is working on an 'unhackable' iPhone, after its run-in with the FBI. Plus: iPhone 7 release date rumours, and the latest leaked photos, including some showing quad speakers
by David Price | 25 May 16
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CONTENTS
Macworld's verdict on the iPhone 7 What iPhone 7 feature do you want the most? What is the iPhone 7? When is the iPhone 7 coming out? Design New features Specifications iPhone 7 images, leaked photos and videos
When will the iPhone 7 come out? (And when will it launch in the UK?) What new features and design changes can we expect in the new iPhone for 2016 when it comes out? And what will Apple's next iPhone be called? iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus? iPhone 7 Pro? iPhone 7 mini? Something new?
The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are getting closer. The web is full of speculation about new iPhone(s) that Apple will launch in 2016, and in this article we gather all the rumours about the iPhone 7: release date, design, specs and new features, from wireless charging to a touchscreen display with built-in Touch ID. Plus any leaked photos of iPhone 7 components we get hold of, and all the cool iPhone 7 concept illustrations and videos that designers have come up with.
We're sure to see a next-generation iPhone in 2016, but what will the new iPhone 7 look like? (Traditionally, Apple alternates between internal upgrades for the 'S' update, then a physical redesign for the full-number update, so a completely redesigned chassis is likely.) What new features should we expect? And when will the iPhone 7 come out? We round up the evidence to bring you everything there is to know about the iPhone 7 so far.
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Bookmark this page for a regularly updated summary of all the information currently available - and all the rumours doing the rounds - related to the iPhone 7: details, clues, hints and rumours, as well as any leaked photos of the iPhone 7 that emerge. We'll update the article whenever we hear worthwhile new information (or scurrilous but interesting gossip) on the subject of Apple's next iPhone.
In this article we talk about the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 - the follow-up to the iPhone 6s. If you'd like to read about the next 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus, take a look at our iPhone 7 Plus rumour roundup. If you're looking for information about the current iPhone range, read our iPhone 6s review, Phone 6s Plus review, iPhone 6 review, iPhone 6 Plus review and iPhone 5s review; and our iPhone buyers' guide.
For more rumour-mongering and future-gazing, take a look at Apple patents and the clues they offer about the future and Apple rumours and predictions for 2016. To peer further into the future, see iPhone 8 and beyond: The future of smartphones.
Last updated, 25 May 2016, to include interesting but not necessarily reliable photo leaks from a case maker and an Italian accessories firm. Take a look and decide for yourself!
Summary: Macworld's verdict on the iPhone 7
In our iPhone 7 rumour roundup we cover a lot of ground: you'd be amazed by the clues, hints and general speculation about the iPhone 7 that people have managed to dig up. But for those who don't want all the detail, the following section sums up our verdict on the whole thing:
1) Apple will launch two new iPhones in September 2016, and just possibly three. We expect a 4.7-inch phone (called the iPhone 7), and a 5.5-inch model (the iPhone 7 Plus). If Apple does update its 4-inch iPhone line in autumn it'll be a minor update, after the launch of the iPhone SE at a special press event in March 2016. It seems more likely to us that Apple has now settled on a twice-yearly update cycle: 4.7- and 5.5-inch iPhones in the autumn, and 4-inch iPhones in the spring.
2) The iPhone 7 is likely to get a substantial physical redesign after the largely identical iPhone 6/6s generations. It's too early to know what direction Apple will pick, but it's likely to be thinner than ever: removing the headphone jack would be one way to help achieve this, forcing music fans to use wireless Bluetooth headphones, or headphones that connect via the Lightning port, or an adaptor. The 'no headphone jack' rumour is starting to gather momentum, with multiple 'confirmations' via multiple (but anonymous) supply chain sources, although we've yet to see firm evidence ourselves. Other design tweaks could include a flush camera and the removal of the antenna bars.
iPhone 7 concept illustration
3) Battery life in the iPhone 7 may be a little better than in the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, but Jony Ive's comments have made it plain that Apple doesn't consider a higher battery life to be worth significant sacrifices in other areas (we suspect that, if they're honest, most smartphone buyers would agree) and Apple's larger-screen iPhones have decent batteries already. You can always buy the lovely new battery pack case...
4) Higher screen resolution is a possibility - Apple undermined its own 'Retina is as sharp as your eyes can see' myth with the iPhone 6 Plus, and the company is playing catchup against many of its rivals in terms of screen resolution. Apple may well take the higher pixel density that was exclusive to the iPhone 6 Plus and 6s Plus (401 pixels per inch, as compared to 326ppi for all non-Plus iPhones), and apply it to all the models in the next generation; it could even raise the pixel density further than this, although we fear that this is unlikely. And a harder screen material would play well, whether Apple manages to resurrect the sapphire situation or goes with Corning's new Project Phire.
5) 16GB will surely be phased out as the lowest storage offering. It's nowhere near enough in this day and age. We hope and expect the iPhone 7 to start at 32GB, with 64GB and 128GB options.
6) The iPhone 7 could get a USB-C port, like the new 12-inch MacBook, but we think this is unlikely. The change from 30-pin to Lightning is recent enough (and was painful enough for many users) that to switch again now would be highly controversial.
7) And as for the other out-there rumours? 3D screen: no. Curved display: potentially. Flexible display: nope. Edge-to-edge screen: yes, quite possibly. Spring-out gaming joystick in the Home button: definitely not. Wireless charging: quite possibly. Better waterproofing: a reasonable bet, although the self-healing ports aren't likely to appear for a while yet.
iPhone 7 release date rumours, new features: Case maker 'reveals' that iPhone 7 will have quad speakers | More leaked photos: Antenna redesign, laser auto-focuser | No-bezel design
iPhone 7 rumours are flying, and we've picked up lots of hints about new features that could appear in the iPhone 7, from wireless charging to a touchscreen with built-in Touch ID. It's believed that Apple is going to ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack, and is working on an 'unhackable' iPhone, after its run-in with the FBI. Plus: iPhone 7 release date rumours, and the latest leaked photos, including some showing quad speakers
by David Price | 25 May 16
Share
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00:00
00:00
CONTENTS
Macworld's verdict on the iPhone 7 What iPhone 7 feature do you want the most? What is the iPhone 7? When is the iPhone 7 coming out? Design New features Specifications iPhone 7 images, leaked photos and videos
When will the iPhone 7 come out? (And when will it launch in the UK?) What new features and design changes can we expect in the new iPhone for 2016 when it comes out? And what will Apple's next iPhone be called? iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus? iPhone 7 Pro? iPhone 7 mini? Something new?
The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are getting closer. The web is full of speculation about new iPhone(s) that Apple will launch in 2016, and in this article we gather all the rumours about the iPhone 7: release date, design, specs and new features, from wireless charging to a touchscreen display with built-in Touch ID. Plus any leaked photos of iPhone 7 components we get hold of, and all the cool iPhone 7 concept illustrations and videos that designers have come up with.
We're sure to see a next-generation iPhone in 2016, but what will the new iPhone 7 look like? (Traditionally, Apple alternates between internal upgrades for the 'S' update, then a physical redesign for the full-number update, so a completely redesigned chassis is likely.) What new features should we expect? And when will the iPhone 7 come out? We round up the evidence to bring you everything there is to know about the iPhone 7 so far.
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Bookmark this page for a regularly updated summary of all the information currently available - and all the rumours doing the rounds - related to the iPhone 7: details, clues, hints and rumours, as well as any leaked photos of the iPhone 7 that emerge. We'll update the article whenever we hear worthwhile new information (or scurrilous but interesting gossip) on the subject of Apple's next iPhone.
In this article we talk about the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 - the follow-up to the iPhone 6s. If you'd like to read about the next 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus, take a look at our iPhone 7 Plus rumour roundup. If you're looking for information about the current iPhone range, read our iPhone 6s review, Phone 6s Plus review, iPhone 6 review, iPhone 6 Plus review and iPhone 5s review; and our iPhone buyers' guide.
For more rumour-mongering and future-gazing, take a look at Apple patents and the clues they offer about the future and Apple rumours and predictions for 2016. To peer further into the future, see iPhone 8 and beyond: The future of smartphones.
Last updated, 25 May 2016, to include interesting but not necessarily reliable photo leaks from a case maker and an Italian accessories firm. Take a look and decide for yourself!
Summary: Macworld's verdict on the iPhone 7
In our iPhone 7 rumour roundup we cover a lot of ground: you'd be amazed by the clues, hints and general speculation about the iPhone 7 that people have managed to dig up. But for those who don't want all the detail, the following section sums up our verdict on the whole thing:
1) Apple will launch two new iPhones in September 2016, and just possibly three. We expect a 4.7-inch phone (called the iPhone 7), and a 5.5-inch model (the iPhone 7 Plus). If Apple does update its 4-inch iPhone line in autumn it'll be a minor update, after the launch of the iPhone SE at a special press event in March 2016. It seems more likely to us that Apple has now settled on a twice-yearly update cycle: 4.7- and 5.5-inch iPhones in the autumn, and 4-inch iPhones in the spring.
2) The iPhone 7 is likely to get a substantial physical redesign after the largely identical iPhone 6/6s generations. It's too early to know what direction Apple will pick, but it's likely to be thinner than ever: removing the headphone jack would be one way to help achieve this, forcing music fans to use wireless Bluetooth headphones, or headphones that connect via the Lightning port, or an adaptor. The 'no headphone jack' rumour is starting to gather momentum, with multiple 'confirmations' via multiple (but anonymous) supply chain sources, although we've yet to see firm evidence ourselves. Other design tweaks could include a flush camera and the removal of the antenna bars.
iPhone 7 concept illustration
3) Battery life in the iPhone 7 may be a little better than in the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, but Jony Ive's comments have made it plain that Apple doesn't consider a higher battery life to be worth significant sacrifices in other areas (we suspect that, if they're honest, most smartphone buyers would agree) and Apple's larger-screen iPhones have decent batteries already. You can always buy the lovely new battery pack case...
4) Higher screen resolution is a possibility - Apple undermined its own 'Retina is as sharp as your eyes can see' myth with the iPhone 6 Plus, and the company is playing catchup against many of its rivals in terms of screen resolution. Apple may well take the higher pixel density that was exclusive to the iPhone 6 Plus and 6s Plus (401 pixels per inch, as compared to 326ppi for all non-Plus iPhones), and apply it to all the models in the next generation; it could even raise the pixel density further than this, although we fear that this is unlikely. And a harder screen material would play well, whether Apple manages to resurrect the sapphire situation or goes with Corning's new Project Phire.
5) 16GB will surely be phased out as the lowest storage offering. It's nowhere near enough in this day and age. We hope and expect the iPhone 7 to start at 32GB, with 64GB and 128GB options.
6) The iPhone 7 could get a USB-C port, like the new 12-inch MacBook, but we think this is unlikely. The change from 30-pin to Lightning is recent enough (and was painful enough for many users) that to switch again now would be highly controversial.
7) And as for the other out-there rumours? 3D screen: no. Curved display: potentially. Flexible display: nope. Edge-to-edge screen: yes, quite possibly. Spring-out gaming joystick in the Home button: definitely not. Wireless charging: quite possibly. Better waterproofing: a reasonable bet, although the self-healing ports aren't likely to appear for a while yet.
See also: How to set up WhatsApp Web on your iPhone | How to spot 'free iPhone' scams | Advanced iOS 9 tips
Macworld poll: What iPhone 7 feature do you want the most?
Let us know which feature you'd be most excited about for the iPhone 7 by answering our poll:
iPhone 7 rumours: What is the iPhone 7?
Sorry if that sounds obvious, but it's not as simple a question as it sounds. The iPhone 7 isn't the seventh iPhone (the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were the 11th and 12th iPhones respectively, in the product's ninth generation, so that ship sailed a long time ago) but it's what we have been for convenience calling Apple's next iPhone launch.
At the moment Apple sells iPhones in three sizes: with 4-inch screens (the iPhone 5s); with a 4.7-inch screen (the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s) and with a 5.5-inch screen (the iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6s Plus). We're currently working on the basis that Apple will make at least one new model in the latter two sizes, and for now we're choosing to call those theoretical devices iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. There could be another 4-inch iPhone, though - which we like to call the iPhone 7 mini, but could be called almost anything at this point.
In fact, the 4in iPhone 6c, or iPhone SE as it is currently being called, has hit the headlines big time over the past few months, and it's rumoured to be arriving as soon as March (this month). Find out more in our iPhone 6c round-up.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: Full iPhone range 2014
Update (09/03/2016): Although we originally thought that Apple would release two variants of its iPhone 7 this year (4.7in and 5.5in), the latest rumours suggest that there could, in fact, be three new models available at launch. Along with the 4.7in iPhone 7 and 5.5in iPhone 7 Plus, KGI Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo claims (via a note obtained by MacRumours) that there will be a third (even more) premium option available, based on the already huge iPhone 7 Plus, which is leading some to call it the iPhone 7 Pro. We're not too sure about this unofficial branding, but we'll go with it until something more convincing gets leaked. Anyway, we digress.
What's the main difference between the iPhone 7 Plus and the iPhone 7 Pro? A new 'groundbreaking' camera. Or should that be cameras? As Kuo claims that the iPhone 7 Pro will sport a dual-camera system on the rear, developed by LinX, an imaging specialist that Apple acquired back in 2015. The LinX imaging technology should provide enhanced speed when taking photos and better low light photography, as well as possibly being able to incorporate a 2-3x optical zoom for better quality when taking photos. It's also rumoured that the camera module is so thin that the camera bump present in the iPhone 6 and 6s range could be a thing of the past (or so we hope!).
But why only release the upgraded camera technology on an expensive model, when the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus cameras can barely compete with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S7? According to Kuo, the decision was made because of supply constraints - Apple can't produce enough LinX camera modules for both the 7 and 7 Plus, so creating a third option allows the company to still bring the technology to market. Apple's "Shot on iPhone" marketing campaign is hugely popular, and a 'Pro' variant of the iPhone with an enhanced camera would definitely be the poster boy for the campaign.
While this is only a rumour and there are no leaked images supporting the claim, Ming-Chi Kuo has something of an impeccable track record when leaking the latest Apple news. Over the past 18 months, Kuo broke the news of the new 12in MacBook before anyone else, along with the iPad Pro (and its November launch date), as well as the bigger screen sizes associated with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. That's without mentioning the fact that Kuo predicted every major feature of the iPhone 6s four months before Tim Cook officially announced the smartphone.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: When is the iPhone 7 coming out?
If Apple sticks to its traditions, we can expect the iPhone 7 to arrive in mid-September 2016.
The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus were unveiled on 9 September 2015 (and released to the public on 25 September), iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were unveiled on 9 September 2014 (released on 19 September); the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s were unveiled on 10 September 2013; the iPhone 5 was unveiled on 12 September. There's a pattern there that the eagle-eyed reader may be able to spot.
Our money is on the 6th, 7th, 13th or 14th of September 2016, since it's usually a Tuesday or a Wednesday. Clear your diary. Although with this being said, there could be some delay for the launch of the iPhone 7, though, or at least a lower than expected supply at launch. This is due to an earthquake in Taiwan that caused damage to Apple supplier TSMC's factories. Earlier in February 2016, reports stated that TSMC has reached a deal with Apple to become the company's sole manufacturer of the A10 chip for the iPhone 7.
iPhone 7 launch date rumours: iPhone 7 could be released as early as summer
AppleInsider is quoting a "reliable source" who predicts that 2016's iPhone 7 will launch several months ahead of the usual yearly upgrade cycle, appearing in the summer of 2016 instead of in September.
The site states that this particular source "has, in the past, provided accurate information about Apple's future product plans", but while this may be true, it must be pointed out that plenty of other sources have made this exact prediction about previous iPhone launches and they've always been wrong. It's just one of those things that gets repeated every year because it's such an appealing rumour.
Apple has significantly shifted its iPhone launch cycle only once: the first four iPhones all launched in summer, then Apple pushed the iPhone 4s back to the autumn, and then every iPhone since then has stuck to that launch cycle. (The iPhone 4s came along in October, admittedly, rather than the September launch date that Apple has followed ever since the iPhone 5.)
If Apple changed the cycle once, it can certainly change it again. But it won't do so lightly: an unexpectedly early upgrade is always infuriating for those who've just bought the previous generation model, and it creates the suspicion that the company might pull a similar trick the following year, leading to a customer base that is more cautious about upgrading. What's more, Apple's natural cycle of announcements sees iOS and OS X upgrades announced at WWDC in June, leaving enough time for the software to be completed in time for the autumn hardware launches. It seems like a risk for Apple to announce everything in the summer and leave its customers hungry for new releases for the rest of the year.
And the reasoning for why Apple would push forward the iPhone 7 launch date is thin.
"This year's iPhone 6s upgrade features largely the same external design as the iPhone 6," argues AppleInsider. "That has prompted concerns among investors that demand for the iPhone 6s could wane, particularly toward the tail end of the product cycle… Launching the iPhone 7 in an earlier window of 2016 would be one way for Apple to address those concerns."
The thing is, every S-class iPhone upgrade has been accused of offering only minor upgrades on the previous generation, yet they all still sell well. And if anything the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus represent more significant upgrades than the iPhone 4s and iPhone 5s did: Live Photos is fun, 3D Touch has the potential to alter the way we think about smartphone interfaces, and the processor and cameras are much improved. Even Touch ID is noticeably quicker.
So while this isn't out of the question, we can't see that any convincing reason has been given why Apple should shift its update schedule next year. (Mind you, as Boy Genius Report points out, this rumour might be a mixup based on Apple's imminent release of a new 4-inch iPhone, which wouldn't replace the iPhone 6s or 6s Plus and therefore wouldn't be such a disruptive launch if it came in the summer. Read our iPhone 6c rumours for more on that, or read the next section for the theory that Apple will split its iPhone launches into two yearly events.)
iPhone 7 launch date rumours: Two iPhones a year
So much for the likely launch date. But it's possible - and has been widely speculated - that Apple will begin releasing new iPhones twice a year, to help it keep up with the ever growing and ever improving competition. This would mean an iPhone launch event in the spring of 2015 followed by another in the autumn.
In this case we would expect less dramatic enhancements in each update: perhaps the full iPhone 7 in autumn, followed by an 'S'-class update in the spring. Or Apple might choose to update its 4-inch smartphones in one set of announcements and its larger phones in the other.
It's an interesting theory, but if we were betting men and women Macworld would put its money on September iPhone launches for some time to come.
iPhone 7 rumours: Design
iPhone 7 release date rumours: iPhone 6 and 6 Plus design
Apple usually keeps the same design for two generations of the iPhone (the 4 and 4s, say, or the 6 and 6s), before unveiling a physical redesign on the next update. We expect the iPhone 7 to be fundamentally different in look and design to the two generations of iPhone that precede it.
There's another theory, though: that Apple will want to come up with a real blockbuster of a redesign for the iPhone's 10th anniversary in 2017, so this year's iPhone will be a relatively minor update in preparation for that. This got some (admittedly shaky) backing when an accessory maker told Macworld that it's making iPhone 7 cases that are virtually identical to the ones it makes for the iPhone 6s.
It's possible that Apple will use different materials to make the iPhone 7 more durable. Before the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were unveiled there was speculation that Apple would use Sapphire glass for the display and Liquidmetal for the chassis, and two generations later Apple may be ready to unveil one or both of these upgrades.
iPhone 7 design: Analyst claims iPhone 7 won't have many attractive selling points
According to infamous KGI Securities analyst Min-Chi Kuo, the upcoming iPhone 7 may be a bit of a disappointment. According to a recent research note posted by Kuo, he believes that Apple may sell fewer iPhones this year than in 2014. Specifically, Kuo mentions that the worst case scenario would see Apple shipping 'only' 190 million iPhones, compared to 193 million back in 2014.
Why? He believes that the iPhone 7 will not feature "many attractive selling points", claiming that the upcoming smartphone will only have minor design changes. Interestingly, he also predicts that Apple is to launch an all-glass iPhone with an AMOLED display in 2017, coinciding with another analysts predictions that Apple has plans to launch an iPhone 8 instead of 7s next year. According to rumours, the "iPhone 8" is to feature wireless charging, no physical Home button and waterproof capabilities.
iPhone 7 design: Photo depicting the iPhone 7 chassis leaks
Update 10 May 2016: French site nowhereelse.fr have shared a leaked image (below), which showcases the exact dimensions of the iPhone 7. These dimensions are identical to the ones found on the iPhone 6s, measuring 67.12mm wide and 138.3mm tall. Through this image, it would appear that there won't be the dual-cameras, that have rumoured in Apple's upcoming phone. The image has the OnLeaks stamp on it, who have been reliable with their Apple leaks in the past.
iPhone 7 - Design leak
On 9 May, Macrumours reported an iPhone 7 which doesn't feature a headphone jack, but does have a smooth back plate finish with Smart Connector abilities around the back of the phone. We can't verify the source, so take the image below with a pinch of salt.
iPhone 7 - Design
If the latest reports via nowherelse are true, we may have a good idea about what to expect with the iPhone 7 in terms of its look. The report features a leaked image of the iPhone 7 chassis, which hints at a redesigned antenna along with a change in the camera lens setup. While some reports claim that the camera bump (present in the iPhone 6s) is gone, we can see that it's still there, although it looks like the chassis surrounding the camera is slightly raised to house the lens. The source? The images were said to be taken at Catcher technologies, a company that supplies cases for Apple products.
The leaked image doesn't only depict changes to the antenna and camera setups, it also 'confirms' that Apple is looking to ditch the 3.5mm jack with the iPhone 7. Of course, as with any leak, this is best taken with a pinch of salt and could've been created based on internet rumours, so don't throw out your headphones just yet.
Interestingly, another leaked image seems to confirm that Apple will be moving the antenna lines from the rear to the edges of the iPhone 7. The image, first appearing on Nowhereelse, seems to showcase a (possibly prototype) iPhone 7 chassis featuring antenna lines along the edge of the smartphone instead of the usual placement on the rear. Unlike the above leak, this one can't be tracked as easily and as such may turn out to be a (very well edited) fan composition. However, we're still months away from the iPhone 7 reveal so it is possible that we're looking at a genuine iPhone 7 prototype. You can take a look at the leaked image below, and decide for yourself:
iPhone 7 design: Apple planning to debut OLED iPhone in 2017
Yes okay, this may turn out to be a rumour regarding the 'S' variant of the iPhone 7 series, but we think it's one still worth mentioning. According to Chinese website Nikkei (via AppleInsider), Apple is planning to make the switch to OLED a year sooner than previously expected, and will be shipping with the iPhone in 2017. Although don't get too excited, as it won't be all iPhones initially - due to manufacturing constraints, the OLED display will be used in either the 5.5in iPhone 7s Plus or the fabled iPhone 7s Pro.
According to Nikkei, Apple is looking to quickly make the switch to OLED displays to improve iPhone sales which analysts predict will stall in the near future. Samsung and LG are expected to provide the bulk of the OLED display manufacturing, although Japan Display is also said to be planning mass production of OLED displays starting early 2018. It's worth taking this with a pinch of salt though, as the ever-reliable KGI Securities Ming-Chi Kuo claims that Apple is unlikely to adopt OLED displays in the iPhone lineup until 2019, quite a way away.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Flush rear camera, stereo speakers, thinner Lightning port & no antenna bands
On 2 February, new reports emerged that suggest the iPhone 7 will no longer have a protruding camera on the rear, and will ditch the antenna bands in favour of a completely unbroken rear casing.
That's according to a source that allegedly spoke with MacRumors, revealing the details about the iPhone 7 design for the first time.
The changes could be achieved through the use of a ceramic back rather than metal, according to Business Korea's 5 February report, but there's no real evidence to support this yet.
NEW: The rumours were reiterated in a new report by Mac Otakara that was published on 29 February, claiming that the iPhone 7 could also have a thinner Lightning port and stereo speakers, and all of these factors could make the iPhone 7 1mm thinner than the iPhone 6s, down to 6.1mm from the current 7.1mm.
iPhone 7 design rumours: 'Confirmation' that Apple is ditching 3.5mm headphone port
After Mac Otakara proposed the idea in late 2015 (see below), two Chinese-language sites have separately offered what they claim is 'confirmation', based on sources in the supply chain, that Apple will not include a 3.5mm headphone jack in the iPhone 7 - although of course it is possible that their sources are the same person, or that one site is just following the other's story. (For what it's worth, neither site links to the other.)
iPhone 7 rumours: Headphone and Lightning ports
Anzhuo (link will require translation) cites "supply chain news" and claims that Apple "has confirmed [that it has] cancelled [the] 3.5mm headphone jack on the next iPhone, [and] meanwhile will replace wired headset [with a] Bluetooth wireless headset."
The firm suggests that users will be restricted to wireless headphones, since "headphone Lightning previously said interface may not exist" - a translation-mangled phrase we take to mean that we probably won't be able to connect any Apple-bundled headphones via the Lightning port. (Third-party headphones that connect via Lightning are already available, albeit rare.) But any Chinese-literate readers are welcome to take issue with our interpretation.
Meanwhile, Wei Feng, poetically reporting "the latest coming from the mouth of the supply chain of wind", states that Apple indeed plans to get rid of "the traditional body in the next generation iPhone headphone jack, and will start from this year for the iPhone with wireless Bluetooth headsets". Wei Feng doesn't specify that the Lightning EarPod story is dead, as Anzhuo did, but makes no mention of any alternative to wireless headsets.
Fast Company is the latest site to 'confirm' this rumour, citing "a source with knowledge of the company’s plans". The site predicts that "the new phone will rely on its Lightning cable port for sound output to wired headphones".
And on 20 January, Cult of Mac shared iOS 9 code that could further hint at the removal of the headphone jack for the iPhone 7. Twitter user Chase Fromm highlighted a bit of code within the iOS 9.3 beta 1.1 software that reads: "Headphones.have.%input.NO."
The 3.5mm headphone jack won't be with us forever, of course (and Apple has a history of controversially jumping off soon-to-be-obsolete technologies ahead of the curve, as it did with Adobe Flash, CD/DVD drives, FireWire, conventional USB ports and so on), but to ditch it without offering any wired alternative strikes us as extreme, even if it would allow Apple to make the iPhone 7 even thinner, squeeze in a bigger battery or whatever.
And what do the headphone companies make of all this speculation? Interestingly enough, as the Verge observes, most of the companies at CES were surprisingly sanguine about the prospect of the headphone jack disappearing from Apple's most popular product. Most of them, after all, also sell wireless models, and there remains the prospect of Lightning-compatible headphones as a new avenue to explore.
Read next: Best Bluetooth wireless headphones
iPhone 7 design rumours: Part leak suggests 3.5mm jack WILL make an appearance on iPhone 7
Though the rumour that Apple will be ditching the 3.5mm headphone jack with the iPhone 7 seems all but confirmed, a recent leak proves otherwise. A newly leaked photo claims to showcase the internals of the upcoming iPhone 7, and most notably of all, the inclusion of a 3.5mm jack. For those unsure what they're looking at, we're referring to the top grey section of the below photo:
The question is - is it legit? It's always tough to tell with part leaks as even though Apple's suppliers (namely Pegatron) are cracking down on iPhone component leaks, the sheer volume of workers at each factory means that this will never be 100 percent effective. It's fairly safe to assume that leaks will eventually get through the barrier. We're not sure of the authenticity of the photo, but if true it could mean that Apple has taken a U-Turn on its plans to ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack from the iPhone 7, much to the delight of legions of Apple fans.
Petition: 'Keep the standard headphone jack'
A number of Apple fans have gone further in their scepticism, going so far as to start a petition demanding that Apple reconsider the plan.
iPhone 7 rumours: Headphone jack petition
"If the rumours are true, the new iPhone 7 will have a non-standard, proprietary headphone jack - making every pair of headphones on earth useless," the petition reads. "Not only will this force iPhone users to dole out additional cash to replace their hi-fi headphones, it will singlehandedly create mountains of electronic waste - that likely won't get recycled."
The petition set itself a goal of 200,000 signatures, and passed that shortly before time of writing: it's presently on 204,303. So there is some weight of feeling behind this. What do you think?
The original 'no headphone jack' rumour
In late 2015, the Japanese-language site Mac Otakara first reported on a rumour that the iPhone 7 won't get a headphone port at all, enabling Apple to shave a further millimetre from the device's thickness.
As we wrote at the time, this would have consequences. It wouldn't rule out headphone use entirely, but it would restrict it considerably. Users would have three options: wireless Bluetooth headphones; newly designed headphones that connect via the Lightning port; or an adaptor, which would probably be overpriced.
The iPhone is very much the iPod of its day, and music is a big part of its appeal, making this a big gamble in order to make an extremely thin phone even thinner. This would be even more unpopular than the removal of USB ports from the 12-inch MacBook. Is Apple really this obsessed with thinness?
Lightning-connected Apple Earpods & Wireless Earpods
If Apple doesn't include a 3.5mm headphone jack in the iPhone 7, it's going to need to ship the phone with new Earpods. According to 9To5Mac, the iPhone 7 will have Lightning-connected Earpods instead, and Apple is also said to be working on wireless Earpods as an alternative.
The wireless Earpods, which are likely to be created with help from the team from Beats Electronics, which Apple acquired in 2014, are expected to be so completely wireless that they won't even have a cable that connects the earpieces together.
And instead of EarPods, they could be called 'AirPods,' a name that Apple has already registered the trademark for.
AirPods may not come cheap - they'll be a premium alternative to EarPods according to the report, and could be around the £200 mark.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Apple could keep the headphone jack, but make it slimmer
Apple was not able to announce, in September, that the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are the thinnest iPhones ever. In fact, they are a tiny bit thicker than their respective predecessors, because they had to squeeze in the components to power 3D Touch and some extra-thick aluminium reinforcement around the most bend-prone areas.
For the iPhone 7, therefore, we suspect that the company may like to trim a few millimetres. One way it can do this - and a clue that thinness is still on its designers' minds - is a newly granted patent, number 9,142,908, for a cut-down headphone connector.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: Headphone connector
If you look around the edge of your current iPhone, you'll see that the headphone aperture appears to be the external factor on exactly how much Apple can thin down the device. The headphone port is bigger, from top to bottom, than the Lightning port, bigger than the speaker grill, marginally bigger than the volume buttons (which could easily be cut down if necessary). It's an obvious target for miniaturisation.
Apple's solution to this is a "Low profile male connector", which sounds a bit like someone who isn't very good at dating but in this case means a D-shaped headphone port. Instead of being round, the headphone connector has a segment lopped off so it takes up slightly fewer precious millimetres.
Via Apple Insider.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Buttonless design
In mid October, Piper Jaffrey analyst Gene Munster (who is notorious for his Apple Television predictions, which have so far proved to be inaccurate) has suggested that the iPhone 7 won't have a Home button, thanks to the new 3D Touch technology found in the iPhone 6s display.
"3D Touch may provide Apple with a way to eliminate the home button on the phone and use the additional space to make the screen bigger or the device smaller," he said. "One barrier to this could be Touch ID, which is integrated into the home button currently. Apple would need to move the Touch ID reader to potentially the side of the phone to remove the home button."
As we discuss later in this article, an Apple patent has revealed that the company is investigating ways to build the Touch ID sensor into the screen itself, so Munster's theory doesn't seem implausible, but as proven with his Apple television predictions, Munster isn't always right... even he says that the odds of a buttonless iPhone 7 are 50%.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Could we even get a thicker chassis? (Probably not.)
We expect the iPhone 7 to be thinner, as explained above, but a lot of users feel that the iPhones have already reached the peak of useful thinness - in the sense that reducing the thickness of the devices any further is going to compromise on qualities such as physical robustness without offering any real benefits in terms of portability. It's even possible that the iPhone 7 could be a bit thicker, if Apple feels it can use this change to incorporate useful new features. We think this is unlikely, but let's run with the theory as a thought experiment.
One reason why the iPhone 7 may be thicker than the iPhone 6s, for instance, would be so that it can feature what Apple calls "sidewall displays".
Apple has published a patent relating to such displays, hinting that a future iPhone could feature a display that extends on to the sides of the device (or a slim second display sitting on the side of the device). This could give access to the slide-to-unlock functionality, music player controls, messaging readout, caller ID, system controls and more.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Non-metal body
Update 19 April 2016: Trusted KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported to 9to5mac that Apple will adopt a full glass case and adopt an AMOLED screen in 2017. Despite this not being a rumour for the planned iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, but rather the following version the iPhone 8 or iPhone 7s/7s Plus, it's still interesting to see the developments towards a ditched design which was present back on the iPhone 4/4s.
We therefore expect to see a metal body (or similar) being used for the upcoming iPhone 7 and 7 Plus.
iPhone rumours - Martin HajekImage render courtesy of Martin Hajek at nowhereelse.fr
The Weibo source who spills the beans on Apple's waterproofing tests in our new features section also reckons that the iPhone 6s & 6s Plus will be the last iPhones to be made of metal. The iPhone 7 will have a chassis made of something else.
But made of what? We don't know. Although liquid metal, ceramics, plastics and sapphire have all been thrown around as possibilities. We find it odd that Apple would ditch its metal design so soon after upgrading to 7000-series aluminium, but radical design changes cannot be ruled out for a full-number iPhone update, and as mentioned above a report from Business Korea in February seems to suggest that ceramic is indeed a possibility.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Curved wraparound screen
Update 29/03/2016: According to KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who has often correctly predicted upcoming Apple products - the analyst think the iPhone 7 or a new product-line within the iPhone 7 family could feature a curved 5.8in AMOLED screen. If this rumour is to be true, there would be an understandable shift from Apple to get rid of the headphone jack and produce a smartphone which is immediately distinguishable over its competitors.
We're into the realm of patents here, which we would generally warn readers means we're talking about developments that could easily end up appearing in a shipped product several years down the line or not appearing at all - Apple, like most tech companies, routinely applies for far more patents than it's ever going to use. But this one has actually been granted (it was applied for a few years back) so it could be reasonably close to reality.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: Wraparound screen
Patent 9,146,590 refers to an "electronic device with wrap around display". And essentially it describes a curved screen that allows for more screen elements to be displayed without making the device significantly bigger. (Remember that the illustrations rarely represent what the designer has in mind. In theory the display could wrap entirely around the device, or at least extend over one edge like the Note Edge.)
While the patent talks about a "flexible display assembly", it's important to note that this isn't a patent for a bendable screen: the flexible portion of the display is attached to the interior surface of the curved transparent housing, which "provides a rigid support structure that prevents deformation".
This patent, like the wraparound display patent mentioned in the new features section, was spotted by Patently Apple.
iPhone 7 design rumours: The flexible iPhone
If we can return to the subject of patents, here's one that's pretty leftfield. We don't expect this to appear in the next generation of iPhone, but it's an intriguing insight into the design directions Apple is considering - or choosing to pretend it's considering.
Apple was recently awarded a patent for 'Flexible electronic devices', covering both flexible device bodies on the exterior and flexible components inside.
iPHone 7 launch rumours: Flexible iPhone 7 patent
"A flexible electronic device may include a flexible display, a flexible housing and one or more flexible internal components configured to allow the flexible electronic device to be deformed," the patent explains.
That really would be a bold riposte to Bendgate: transforming it from a bug to a feature, in effect (even though, as we've repeatedly pointed out, the iPhone 6 Plus is hardly unusual in its susceptibility to strenuous bending). The iPhone would bend, the screen would bend, the battery inside would bend, everything would be fine.
It's still hard to see exactly what this would gain us, though, as opposed to the converse rumour (discussed further down this section) holding that Apple will beef up the iPhone 7's durability by using the 7000 Series aluminium alloy from the Apple Watch Sport.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Samsung to make iPhone 7's flexible display
According to the latest reports, Samsung Display is set to make flexible OLED displays for the iPhone 7. The rumour stems from claims that Samsung is reaching out to display tech companies in South Korea that they're hoping will lend a hand with building the displays, as the order from Apple will be huge.
Samsung may even be intending to invest billions in an new factory in which it'll manufature the displays.
At present, iPhones use LCD displays, but the Apple Watch uses a flexible OLED so it's certainly possible that Apple intends to bring the tech to the iPhone. We're not talking flexible in the same way as the patent above, though. It'll simply mean that the screen could curve around the design of the iPhone 7 more accurately, hinting further at an edge-to-edge display. It'll also likely be used to improve 3D Touch.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Touch ID built into the screen
In the continuing march of miniaturisation, one of the elements of the iPhone design that's proved resistant to shrinkage is the bezel below the screen - it can't get much smaller than it already is because it needs to house the Home button. Which is why a recurring theory is that Apple will extend the screen down past the Home button, or even incorporate the Touch ID sensor that lives in the recent iPhones' Home button into the touchscreen.
Technology that would facilitate such a development was recently announced by a biometric R&D company called Sonavation.
"Sonavation," the firm declares, "has reached an industry milestone by successfully developing and bonding an ultrasound biometric sensor which is compatible with Corning Gorilla Glass, providing a high-resolution 3D fingerprint image."
This would enable Apple (which is known to use Gorilla Glass in its iPhones, even if the supplier is apparently not permitted to say this publicly) to run the screen vertically edge-to-edge, with no cut-out for the Home button. The Home button could occupy the same position but appear only when needed, much like the software keyboard; and the technology for Touch ID would be bonded to the underside of the screen at the appropriate point.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Touch ID built into screen
Last year Apple filed a patent that appeared to back up the theory that it's looking into ideas like this. Patent application number 20150036065, for "a fingerprint sensor... incorporated in a display stack in an electronic device", was filed by a number of Apple's engineers in April 2014 and published recently. Here are some of the accompanying illustrations (although you should bear in mind that patent images are almost universally ugly, and shouldn't bear much resemblance to what the finished design would look like):
iPhone 7 new features rumours: Touch ID built into screen
iPhone 7 new features rumours: Touch ID built into screen
We're still not completely sure what this design would achieve, since (as you can see in the iPhone illustration in Fig. 1) it doesn't even do away with the Home button, and therefore doesn't increase the amount of screen area.
And we've not been blown away by the reliability of the Touch ID sensor on the iPhone 5s, which seems to be hyper-sensitive to any quantity of grease sitting on the Home button. (Granted, the 6s and 6s Plus sensors seem more reliable, as well as faster.) Given how smudged an iPhone screen can get, this seems like it could be even worse, even before you factor in potential complications of embedded the sensor within the screen elements.
In other words, this seems like a long shot, at least for now.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Sapphire glass...
Apple is already using sapphire in the display of the Apple Watch, and it's possible that the company is now ready to import this material into its smartphone lin-up. Sapphire glass is more durable than Gorilla Glass, so could be an ideal material to use for the bigger display.
Apple was backing a Sapphire plant in Arizona - run by GT Advanced Technologies - that could have been used to manufacture 200 million 5-inch iPhone displays per year, according to reports. But that company has now been declared bankrupt and was unable to meet Apple's demands.
There could be a further twist, however. New reports suggest that long-term Apple supplier Foxconn is gearing up to build its own sapphire plant in Asia, and could be able to take GT Advanced Technologies' place.
Foxconn's planned plant in Taiwan will cost it $2.6bn to set up, but could give it a huge advantage as companies jostle to be involved in the production of the next iPhone.
Sapphire vs Gorilla Glass: What is Sapphire glass, what are its advantages, and why is it a good idea for the next iPhone?
iPhone 7 design rumours: ...or super-hardened 'Project Phire' Gorilla Glass
Sapphire glass sounds nice, but don't write off Gorilla Glass (the material used on current iPhones) just yet.
Corning, the company that makes Gorilla Glass, has responded to the looming threat of Sapphire glass. It announced a new development at the start of February 2015: an ultra-hardened composite material that at this point is known by the name Project Phire.
At an investor meeting, James Clappin, president of Corning Glass Technologies, explained how the firm expects to beat sapphire: "We told you last year that sapphire was great for scratch performance but didn't fare well when dropped. So we created a product that offers the same superior damage resistance and drop performance of Gorilla Glass 4 with scratch resistance that approaches sapphire."
Cnet has the full story.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Liquidmetal chassis
Liquidmetal is also said to be under consideration as a material for the chassis, because it's more durable than aluminium: a smaller quantity of this material can be used to achieve the same degree of strength as the metal used for Apple's current iPhones. This would enable Apple to keep the bigger iPhone light and thin, despite the bigger screen.
(But is Apple bothered about device strength any more? Device strength may have been on Apple's mind before the iPhone 6s launch, following the 'Bendgate' controversy that afflicted the iPhone 6 Plus, but 7000-series aluminium and reinforced sides have made the new iPhones almost unbendable.)
Plus, removing the bezels in the bigger iPhone to create an edge-to-edge display would mean Apple could introduce a bigger display without the need to increase the overall size of the iPhone too much.
It's also possible that Apple will bring some other elements of the technology used in the Apple Watch to the iPhone 7. For example, the Apple Watch's display can detect finger pressure, so the iPhone 7's display (or perhaps just a portion of it) could be capable of doing the same.
iPhone 7 design rumours: Bezel-free design
On 17 May 2016 Apple filed a patent for a bezel-free device, which indicates Apple is potentially looking to have a full glass and 3D Touch device. The image below, a render design by Marek Weidlich shows how the iPhone could look like if it were to be bezel-free.
We think this design is innovative, but we don't expect it to be a reality for the next iPhone 7 line. Normally patents are filed much earlier than when the idea becomes reality. As the patent was just filed in May 2016, we don't expect to see this design present in the iPhone 7 which will most probably be launched in September 2016.
iPhone 7 rumours: New features
There's a lot more to the iPhone 7 than screen size, of course. What new features can we expect to see?
iPhone 7 new features: Smart connector
Though we're still a while away from the rumoured iPhone 7 launch, we may have caught our first glimpse at one of its new features - a smart connector, much like those used on the 9.7in and 12.9in iPad Pro collection. Of course, as with any rumour/leak it's best to take it with a pinch of salt but according to a new report from Mac Otakara, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will feature a smart connector.
The publication goes on to suggest that it may be used in conjunction with a smart keyboard for iPhone, but we're not convinced - there iPhone 6s is only 4.7in and it's fairly safe to assume that the iPhone 7 will be of a similar size, a size that in our opinion is too small to benefit from a physical keyboard. Mac Otakara claims that "the possibility is great" that earlier leaked images are "the real thing", and even went on to claim that the iPhone 7 could be as thin as 6.1mm, although there was no source provided for this information.
More recently, Logitech (or Logi?) has launched the Logi Base, the first accessory to utilise the iPad Pro smart connector for charging capabilities. As first reported by AppleInsider, the Base uses magnets to easily line up the iPad Pro with the charger, providing users with something close to wireless charging. It also means that you can pick up the iPad and walk away without needing to unplug it. While it's specific to the iPad Pro, it gives you an idea about what a smart connector on an iPhone could be used for.
iPhone 7 new features: iPhone 7 to be 'unhackable'
An odd and confusing rumour currently going round claims that Apple is working on new features that will make its iPhones impossible to hack - even for Apple's own engineers. This is an apparent response to the FBI's ongoing attempts to get Apple to break into an iPhone 5c used (but not technically owned) by one of the attackers in the San Bernardino shootings.
I say confusing, because it's unclear what this will involve, and many of the current iPhones' security measures are unverified. Yes, it's understood that Apple could in theory (but is refusing to) install custom firmware on the 5c and bypass the built-in protections that stop hackers from brute-forcing the passcode. But until now it was also understood that the Secure Enclave on the iPhone 5s and later would prevent Apple from using the same methods on later models.
The Times' article implies that Apple intends to go still further with hardware protections on the iPhone 7, although it's also possible that it intends to add software features in an iOS update and retrospectively improve the 5c's ability to withstand hacking attacks.
In any case, the publicity of Apple's battle with the FBI has ensure that privacy is high on the news agenda, and it would be understandable if the company (or one of its rivals) chose this year to announce a smartphone with market-leading privacy protections. Interestingly, however, pollsters have found that a majority of Americans actually take the FBI's side in this case, suggesting that privacy may not be a priority for everyone. (Or maybe we each care only about our own privacy, rather than as an abstract principle.)
iPhone 7 new features: Waterproofing - and official waterproofing this time
Update, 26 Feb 2016: The Samsung Galaxy S7, unveiled at MWC 2016, has full IP68-standard waterproofing (after getting rid of the feature for the S6k, to fans' disappointment). This adds additional pressure for Apple to make the iPhone 7 waterproof.
It's been claimed on the Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo that Apple is testing out waterproof designs for the iPhone 7. (Mac Otakara, which picked up on the claims, says that dustproofing is also being looked at, although we can't spot any mention of this in the original posts. Perhaps it's an issue related to translation.) This is reportedly and unsurprisingly at a very early stage - "volume production is very low!", the (translated) post points out - but is being assessed ahead of work starting on prototype designs.
The claims remain just that at this point, of course, since we have only the word of a Weibo user to back this up. (A user who cites 15 years of experience in integrated circuit design and has - a presumably respectable - 32,904 fans on the site, but still.) If they are true, though, it's likely that more leaks and evidence will emerge in the months to come, and we'll update this article with any developments.
What we're talking here, at any rate, is proper official waterproofing, since brave early buyers have discovered that the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are themselves much better at dealing with submersion than previous Apple devices. Apple evidently doesn't feel quite confident enough about this upgrade to name it as a new feature (which is odd, since this would be a big step forward to boast about). We saw similar reticence with the Apple Watch, which Apple would only claim as splash-proof but appears to be basically waterproof in any reasonable conditions.
Whether the iPhone 7, then, will be announced as Apple's first officially waterproof phone (regardless of its true capabilities) remains to be seen. Some commenters to the original Weibo post, indeed, predicted that waterproofing wouldn't be seen until the iPhone 7s… but now we're really getting ahead of ourselves.
iPhone 7 could 'dry itself by shooting water out of its speakers'
And while we're on the subject of waterproofing...
One of the most-read articles on Macworld is a tutorial discussing ways of drying out an iPhone that's got wet: it's a distressing, and distressingly common, thing to happen to a device that costs several hundred pounds and contains important, sensitive and possibly unrecoverable data.
For this reason readers and pundits frequently speculate on the possibility that future iPhones will be waterproof. Indeed, the most recent generation of iPhone models are the most waterproof yet; but we still wouldn't be pleased if the iPhone 6s fell in a paddling pool.
A patent published on 12 November suggests a radical new solution to the water logging issue: a mechanism whereby the iPhone can dry itself by pumping water - or other liquid - out through its speaker grills.
iPhone 7 release date rumour: Water expelling patent
Patent application 20150326959, wonderfully, is called LIQUID EXPULSION FROM AN ORIFICE.
"The embodiments described herein are directed to an acoustic module that is configured to remove all or a portion of a liquid that has accumulated within a cavity of the acoustic modules," the patent's summary reads.
The concept is centred around modules within the speaker cavities that can be made more or less hydrophobic, depending on the charge applied to them: when liquid is detected, charges would be applied across the various modules in such a way that the liquid would be moved across the modules and ultimately expelled from the cavity.
We love the idea almost as much as the name of the patent, but as with most of the more interesting patents we hear about, it's unlikely to bear fruit in a real shipped product for a little while.
iPhone 7 new features: Wet finger support
Even if Apple doesn't go for a fully waterproof design, we could see Apple introduce a new feature that would allow you to use your touchscreen with wet fingers. Apple supplier Japan Display has revealed that it has developed new display technology that can operate with wet fingers, something that most smartphone screens are currently unable to do.
But this technology could be taken even further if Apple does indeed make it's phone completely waterproof, as it could allow the touchscreen to be used underwater for capturing photographs of sealife, for example.
iPhone 7 new features: Self-healing ports
One solution to the waterproofing conundrum used on rival smartphones has been small removable caps that sit over the ports that are vulnerable to water. But these tend to be fiddly, and a bit ugly: not very Apple. What about if the ports were covered, but you didn't need to take anything out before plugging in your headphone or charging cable?
This sounds more sci-fi than R&D, but a patent application published on 10 December 2015 shows that Apple has been looking at the possibility of using port seals that can be pierced by a male plug connector, and then heal themselves back to waterproof integrity after the connector is removed.
Patent application 20150357741, called ELECTRONIC DEVICE WITH HIDDEN CONNECTOR, describes "a self-healing elastomer applied over one or more external electronic connectors" that may "provide environmental protection for the connector and the electronic device".
iPhone 7 release date & new feature rumours: Self-healing ports
The plug is forced through the elastomer seal whenever a connection is needed.
"Electronic probes may temporarily penetrate the self-healing elastomer to mate with the electronic connector," the application explains. "After removal of the probes the self-healing elastomer may elastically reform and self-heal."
Self-healing materials are currently used in a variety of products, such as smartphone cases and screen protectors, so this isn't quite as fanciful a concept as it might sound to the uninitiated. We haven't been particularly impressed by such products thus far, but part of the problem is aesthetic: when you've got a scratch on your iPhone's screen protector you would expect the self-healing mechanism to remove the scratch so effectively that you can't see it was ever there, but our experience suggests that isn't practical with current technology. But Apple's concept only needs the self-healing to be effective in a crude, broad sense - making the aperture waterproof again, without it having to look perfect.
For those who are interested in materials sciences, here's what Apple's application has to say about the self-healing elastomer:
"[0039] Self-healing elastomer 315 may be a polymer with elastic properties such as a low Young's modulus and a high failure strain. In further embodiments, self-healing elastomer 315 may comprise a silicone material, also known as a polymerized siloxane. In some embodiments, the polymerized siloxane may be mixed inorganic-organic polymers with the chemical formula [R2SiO]n, where R is an organic group such as methyl, ethyl, or phenyl. In these embodiments the silicone material may comprise an inorganic silicon-oxygen backbone with organic side groups attached to the silicon atoms. In further embodiments self-healing elastomer 315 may include one or more materials that change its color. In some embodiments self-healing elastomer 315 may approximately match a color of housing 150. Other formulations may be used without departing from the invention."
Via Cult of Mac
iPhone 7 new features: Wireless charging
It's a perennial rumour for upcoming Apple devices, but wireless charging could be a reality this time around: it didn't arrive with the iPhone 6s as some had predicted, but was introduced to the Apple Watch as inductive charging.
As iMore's Rene Ritchie points out, inductive charging hasn't been practical for the iPhone in previous years because the technology available at the time didn't work through an aluminium backplate (the Apple Watch, which does offer wireless charging, has a ceramic back). But this could all be about to change in the near(ish) future. In July Qualcomm announced a wireless charging breakthrough that does work through metal. This came too late for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, but the technology may appear in a subsequent generation of Apple smartphone.
It has to be said that, whatever the reasoning behind it, Apple is behind a lot its rivals in this respect. The Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge both offer wireless charging, as does the Google Nexus 6 and the Motoroloa Droid Turbo, but the tech has been available in a handful of phones since around 2010. (Electric toothbrushes have had it since the 1990s.)
Indeed, there have been inductive charging cases available for the iPhone for some time, and nearly two years ago we were talking about the technology appearing in what we were then referring to as the iPad 5: iPad 5 patent: inductive Smart Cover contains battery.
Wireless charging sounds amazing, but we should stress that at the moment inductive charging has a very short range; so you wouldn't be able to just sit at your desk and have your iPhone (in your pocket) charge from the plug several feet away. Rather, you'd place the device on a wired mat. Convenient, but not quite as space-age as it might have sounded when we talked about 'wireless charging'.
The artist Yasser Farahi, whose work appears lower down in the images and videos section, has come up with a mocked-up advert for this feature:
iPhone 7 concept illustration by Yasser Farahi: wireless charging
iPhone 7 new features: Anti-overheating tech
Some iPhone 6s users have been complaining that their Touch ID fingerprint sensors have been overheating, causing the home button to become "burning hot," but that should soon be a thing of the past if Apple's latest patent is anything to go by.
On 13 October, a new Apple patent was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office that describes a method of automatically capping its power usage in order to cool down. It would use a built-in temperature sensor that would monitor the heat of the iPhone and adjust its power usage accordingly.
This tech could well make its way into the iPhone 7 in order to address the overheating issues.
iPhone 7 new features: Gesture passcode
There was a small amount of mild irritation when iOS 9 launched and Apple started to ask us to set up 6-digit passcodes on new iPhones (instead of 4-digit ones) by default. Our tutorial explaining how to go back to 4 digits has been quite popular, but we should probably point out that improved device security isn't an entirely terrible thing.
Meanwhile, the next iPhone - or one a few generations down the line, since we're talking patents again - could entirely transform the way we unlock our devices. Apple has been granted a patent for a gesture-based passcode system.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: Gesture passcodes
The patent - number 9,147,058 - is labelled "Gesture entry techniques", and describes its claims thus:
"The present embodiments relate to the use of security measures based on non-alphanumeric inputs that are user configurable (as opposed to purely biometric inputs) to control access to restricted information or functions. For example, access to confidential information may be based on a gesture input via a touch sensitive input device, such as a touch sensitive display or touchpad. A gesture may be used to invoke one or more authentication screens, such as, a gesture entry screen, a gesture replay screen, and a gesture re-entry verification screen, for accessing confidential information or functions that may be otherwise unavailable."
We've seen this before in Android world, but it would be a nice option for iOS users. Apple's been on the case with this since 2012, but has finally been granted the patent, so we're hopeful that it could make an appearance at some point in the near future - whether touted as a feature of the iPhone 7, or as a software update as part of iOS 10, or as a feature that relies on both.
iPhone 7 new features: No SIM card…
Will Apple ditch SIM cards?
A report in the Financial Times [paywall] in late July suggests that smartphones with physical SIM cards may soon be a thing of the past, as Apple and other smartphone manufacturers come closer to agreeing a standard for a built-in software/electronic SIM.
The FT predicts that this project is more likely to bear fruit in the 2016 generation of iPhones than the ones released in autumn 2015; this year's iPhones (the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, perhaps) are more likely to come with an Apple-branded hardware SIM like the iPad Air 2. The Apple SIM (which we discuss in the next section) works with multiple networks, offering many of the same benefits as a software SIM but requiring less wrangling with the networks.
iPhone 7 new features: …or a pre-installed 'Apple SIM'
The same source who told AppleInsider about the RAM increase (in the specs section, above) also reckons that the iPhone 7 is likely to come with a pre-installed Apple SIM.
"[The Apple SIM], which also made its debut with the iPad Air 2, allows consumers to sign up for mobile data plans from any participating carrier directly from the Settings app without long-term contracts and to switch providers at any time," says the site.
This is unlikely to be a popular move with the carriers, although it may be a hit with users. Read more about the Apple SIM in this article:
Apple's new SIM and what it means to you in the UK
iPhone 7 new features: Dynamic Home button
This one sounds a little like the 'joystick Home button' rumour we look at below, but is rather more plausible.
Apple has published a new patent for a Home that is sensitive to gestures: you'd be able to swipe across it, or lean a thumb in one direction to scroll the screen of a game, for example, that way.
As BusinessInsider puts it:
"The patent details an iOS home button capable of detecting various gestures along with the force of each touch. In other words, imagine Force Touch [see below], albeit applied to the home button as opposed to the device's display."
It certainly sounds less damage-prone than the 'pop-out' Home button we heard about earlier this year, and which we find very hard to imagine appearing in the iPhone 7. Then again, plenty of pundits have been speculating about Apple doing away with the Home button entirely - as is the case on a number of Android smartphones - and installing Touch ID on the screen itself. Colour us unconvinced.
See also: EE WiFi calling - What is it and how do I set it up on my iPhone?
iPhone 7 new features: 'Joystick'-style Home button for gamers
This rumour is pretty far out there, and we're not sure it's realistic to expect this to appear in any Apple devices for a while yet. But it's definitely an interesting idea.
Essentially the concept is this: the Home button on the iPhone 7 would be able to 'pop up' on a little spring and turn into a sort of mini-joystick for playing games. There are plenty of iOS games that would benefit from a hardware controller (this explains the enduring popularity of Bluetooth gaming controller accessories) and this sounds like a lot of fun.
But gamers remain only one section of the iPhone's audience, and it seems like a risky idea to potentially compromise the resilience of everyone's iPhone Home button (which has famously been very prone to breakage in the past) for a feature that would benefit only some users.
A wacky idea that we're not convinced by, then - but one that is backed up by an Apple patent: application 20150015475, originally filed on 9 July 2013 but only published by the US Patent Office on 15 January 2015. So somebody at Cupertino thinks the idea is worth a thought.
iPhone 7 release date rumours: patent for 'joystick' Home button
(Bear in mind, however, that Apple often patents ideas that it doesn't actually build - to cover itself for future changes of plan, to avoid patent trolling, and perhaps even to mislead rivals about its direction.)
Best iPhone (and iPad) games
iPhone 7 new features: New charger
In August 2014, rumours about a new iPhone charger emerged, suggesting that the USB part of the charger could be reversible, just like the Lightning connector.
A video showing what's believed to be a new charger for a future with a reversible fully reversible USB Lightning cable emerged on the web earlier in 2014. It shows the USB being plugged in to the adapter both ways, in the same way that the Lightning connector itself is reversible.
iPhone 7 new features: iOS 10
iOS 10 is also likely to introduce new features at a software level. Among the features we're hoping to see in iOS 10: improved parental controls and group FaceTime calls.
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