'iPhone 7' to return to flat back without visible antenna bands - report
Apple's next flagship iPhone will return to a flatter and more elegant rear casing, ditching some of the style cues of the iPhone 6 and 6s, a report said on Tuesday.
A mockup of the new design.
The device's rear camera module, for instance, will lay flush with the rest of the back, a source explained to MacRumors. When the iPhone 6 was launched in 2014, some shoppers and reviewers complained that its camera bump was unattractive and prevented the phone from resting even on a table or desk. The 6s continued that design.
Apple is also said to be removing some antenna bands. Lines should, however, remain around the top and bottom edges, and it's possible that the bands will just be concealed.
The phone is otherwise expected to look similar to the iPhone 6s, and the source was unable to say whether it might be thinner than recent models.
The person's claims are some of the first hints of what the iPhone 7 might actually look like. Earlier reports have already hinted at feature changes like full waterproofing, and the removal of a 3.5mm headphone jack in favor of Lightning and Bluetooth headphones. It might even gain wireless charging, and/or a dual-lens camera on more expensive Plus models. One of those lenses is expected to offer optical zoom.
Rumors have yet to narrow down a release date, but a launch will most likely happen in Apple's usual September window.
A mockup of the new design.
The device's rear camera module, for instance, will lay flush with the rest of the back, a source explained to MacRumors. When the iPhone 6 was launched in 2014, some shoppers and reviewers complained that its camera bump was unattractive and prevented the phone from resting even on a table or desk. The 6s continued that design.
Apple is also said to be removing some antenna bands. Lines should, however, remain around the top and bottom edges, and it's possible that the bands will just be concealed.
The phone is otherwise expected to look similar to the iPhone 6s, and the source was unable to say whether it might be thinner than recent models.
The person's claims are some of the first hints of what the iPhone 7 might actually look like. Earlier reports have already hinted at feature changes like full waterproofing, and the removal of a 3.5mm headphone jack in favor of Lightning and Bluetooth headphones. It might even gain wireless charging, and/or a dual-lens camera on more expensive Plus models. One of those lenses is expected to offer optical zoom.
Rumors have yet to narrow down a release date, but a launch will most likely happen in Apple's usual September window.
Comments
My favorite iPhone design will always be the glass-clad iPhone4. For me personally, it was the classiest design for a phone today. Sure, it was on the delicate side, but it was a gorgeous piece of engineering.
The back panel on my 4S cracked and I replaced it with the iFixit glass back, which is even more fragile than the official Apple rear glass. Looking inside the phone is really quite a treat-although the phone itself on iOS 9 is nearly useless.
If the edge was liquid metal for instance, the front glass and the back zirconia crystal it would essentially be the same as iPhone 4 (only presumably rounded like the 6 series), and would fit this description as well as the previous rumour about materials.
Such a phone would be almost indestructible. Also, both zirconia and liquid metal can be "doped" to appear to the eye to look exactly like each other. The zirconia can easily be made to look like the shiny liquid metal we've seen previously or like aluminium if desired. The liquid metal in turn can look like shiny metal, aluminium, or even glass in some instances. Apple has many patents that are specifically about zirconia inclusions in liquid metal bases and vice versa.
They've been researching these materials in concert with each other for years now, but perhaps they've only found out it's impossible. We can't know for now.
The black iPhone 4s best still.
5/5s good.
Like a lots of things at Apple, design has been down hill since Jobs died.
Obviously Steve pushed everyone including Ive in a way that Cook can't or won't.
The only reasonable hypothesis is that Apple had in mind to use liquidmetal for a particular purpose and it turned out to be impractical, or too costly, or they changed direction. They probably only renewed the deal as a spoiler to prevent others from using it.
The 5 was very serviceable naked phone but even the most dedicated iPhone nudists have covered up with the 6 thanks to it's middle age spread.