Latest sketchy rumor claims Apple to launch two 'iPhone 6' models with 4.7" & 5.5" displays in Sept.
Rumors about Apple's next iPhone continue to fly, with the latest questionable stab claiming the company is planning to launch a so-called "iPhone 6" this September with two larger screen sizes: 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches.
The details supposedly come from "industry insiders" who allege to have seen "prototypes" of the upcoming devices, a report from the South China Morning Post said on Wednesday. Both devices are rumored to feature scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass and will feature a new pixel density of 441 pixels-per-inch.
The pixel density specifics are particularly questionable, because the number cited is off by eight pixels, if Apple were to maintain the 16:9 screen aspect ratio currently found on the iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5. For Apple to again change the aspect ratio of the iPhone's display seems suspect.
In addition, the report quoted an insider who reportedly said that the next iPhone will have a flat -- and not curved -- display because the company is following a lead supposedly set by Samsung.
"Apple doesn't do anything until Samsung does it, and then they improve on it," the source was quoted as saying.
Given the questionable claims made in the report, it's unlikely the specifics will turn out to be accurate. However, it is another major publication piling on to the rumors that Apple is planning to release at least one larger iPhone model later this year. For example, last month The Wall Street Journal claimed that Apple was actually planning to launch two larger models this year, in some level of agreement with Wednesday's latest rumors.
Apple's current flagship device, the iPhone 5s, sports a 4-inch screen packing in 326 pixels-per-inch into its Retina display. Prior to the iPhone 5, Apple's smartphones sported smaller 3.5-inch screens.
Until now, most rumors have pegged the size of Apple's next iPhone at under 5 inches, including claims from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities, who has a strong track record in predicting the company's future product plans. They suggest that Apple strongly believes one-handed use provides a superior experience on smartphones.
So-called big-screen "phablets" have become increasingly popular, with Samsung leading the way in terms of selection. The Korean firm's Galaxy Note III, which was released last year, features a 5.7-inch display, while the Galaxy Mega comes close to being a small tablet with a 6.3-inch screen.
The details supposedly come from "industry insiders" who allege to have seen "prototypes" of the upcoming devices, a report from the South China Morning Post said on Wednesday. Both devices are rumored to feature scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass and will feature a new pixel density of 441 pixels-per-inch.
The pixel density specifics are particularly questionable, because the number cited is off by eight pixels, if Apple were to maintain the 16:9 screen aspect ratio currently found on the iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5. For Apple to again change the aspect ratio of the iPhone's display seems suspect.
In addition, the report quoted an insider who reportedly said that the next iPhone will have a flat -- and not curved -- display because the company is following a lead supposedly set by Samsung.
"Apple doesn't do anything until Samsung does it, and then they improve on it," the source was quoted as saying.
Given the questionable claims made in the report, it's unlikely the specifics will turn out to be accurate. However, it is another major publication piling on to the rumors that Apple is planning to release at least one larger iPhone model later this year. For example, last month The Wall Street Journal claimed that Apple was actually planning to launch two larger models this year, in some level of agreement with Wednesday's latest rumors.
Apple's current flagship device, the iPhone 5s, sports a 4-inch screen packing in 326 pixels-per-inch into its Retina display. Prior to the iPhone 5, Apple's smartphones sported smaller 3.5-inch screens.
Until now, most rumors have pegged the size of Apple's next iPhone at under 5 inches, including claims from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities, who has a strong track record in predicting the company's future product plans. They suggest that Apple strongly believes one-handed use provides a superior experience on smartphones.
So-called big-screen "phablets" have become increasingly popular, with Samsung leading the way in terms of selection. The Korean firm's Galaxy Note III, which was released last year, features a 5.7-inch display, while the Galaxy Mega comes close to being a small tablet with a 6.3-inch screen.
Comments
Well this isn't that farfetched since Apple already switched to having 2 parallel new iPhones starting last year. They have also said that they don't think a large screen phone is for everyone. So it makes sense to have 2 size screens to satisfy people who don't like large screens and those that think the screen should be bigger. They're already doing it with the iPad and iPad mini.
Just as well the rumours are sketchy, don't know what we'd do if they were rock solid!
Then they will say, Apple doesn't do anything until Samsung does it, and then they improve on it.
"Rumors"..."questionable"..."so-called"
...
3 keys words from the article...and 2 more from the title...
"sketchy rumor"
"claims"
I don't think they will make the phone any bigger. They may make the screen bigger by reducing the bezel to nothing, but that's the only way.
It seems more likely that Apple are testing two sizes and will choose one of them to put into production. If Apple will have two sizes of iPhones, the smaller size would almost certainly be the current size.
I could imagine the lineup a year from now being iPhone 6, 5s, and 5. They might keep the iPhone 4 in production for poorer countries like India.
I can't wait to see these anal-cysts proven wrong again when Apple releases another 4" iPhone 6.
"Apple doesn't do anything until Samsung does it, and then they improve on it," the source was quoted as saying.
I guess that's why Apple is waiting for Samsung to release 64bit...
...oh, snap!
It seems more likely that Apple are testing two sizes and will choose one of them to put into production.
My sensible side says you're right.
My whimsical side says iPhone and iPad Nano
With enough guesses, someone will be close and then they can claim later on they were accurate so people believe them in future and maybe get paid for their analysis. The fact Macrumors yesterday posted a mockup image with a 4.7" and 5.5" phone here:
http://www.macrumors.com/2014/02/11/iphone-6-said-to-adopt-bezel-free-display/
and then today, there comes out news about someone seeing a 4.7" and 5.5" form factor, it's clear that it's the usual cycle of rumors based on mockups, based on rumors.
The problem Samsung and its fans have is that they want to believe they make a difference. They are insecure about the fact that Samsung's contribution to the mobile phone market is irrelevant and they are so desperate for Apple to copy something in order to validate it. This is one reason Apple shouldn't do 4.7" or above because there are so many people waiting with baited breath to jump on it as evidence of Apple following Samsung.
The width of the iPhone is comfortable for anyone to hold. 4" isn't quite the limit of one-handed use but it's comfortably within it. The limit is around 4.2" or 4.3" as the Blackberry Z10 demonstrated. If they went edge-to-edge with the current form factor, they could fit a 4.3" display in. That's also the limit of not needing to increase the resolution to stay above 300PPI.
To make a much bigger screen and stay above 300PPI without causing developers any problems, they have to increase the resolution considerably and possibly the backlight. While high-res panels exist already, they use OLED and the brightness level is about half the iPhone so not good in daylight and the display power usage is double.
4.67".
So you're saying that everyone knows everything?
Yeah, Apple's waiting for Samsung's fingerprint sensor too...
Again, are you guys blind or something else? What if they make a 4.3 AND a 5.2 like they do on everything else? How in the world would someone complain?
For me, the current screen is worse than a joke because it is useless small as a mobile device. For others, it's just too small... Apple can and will give options.
Oh man. A lot of AI readers are going to choke on their cheerios this morning.
The rumors are neither all wrong nor all correct. The iPhone 4/4s were out of the bag before release, the iPhone 5 as well. The NFC claims are still wrong to this day (and probably others that I've forgotten.)
I'd imagine that the accuracy of the rumors are a function of time, and the further away the probable release date (sept. or so being pretty far away,) the less likely they are to be accurate.
That said, I don't find anything too unreasonable about two iPhone models (it's been done already,) and certainly not one larger iPhone model. It really could go either way.
I'm inclined to think Apple will release one, modestly larger, iPhone this year, but if they did an "iPhone Pro" I'd not be that terribly surprised.
The tone of the article is a good enough reason to doubt the veracity of the claims, but it might just happen to be right, for all that.
What I can see is a 4" and 4.8", maintaining the same aspect ratio and allowing customer choice between a currently successful size and a larger version with higher resolution..
They MIGHT bump 4" to 4.3 or 4.5 if they can keep the same size.. but we won't know until it's in hand really.
I can also see them dropping the numbering system.. it might go iPhone and iPhone Pro.. the numbering has been getting silly and I suspect soon it will be a thing of the past. This would put its iPhone in line with the way they do their Macs Pro / MacBook Pro / Macbook Air.
They gave up on number those a loooong time ago.
You'll note they don't call the iPad an iPad 4/5.. It's just iPad Air now and iPad Mini Retina.. which I suspect will just be iPad Mini next time.