New video shows alleged 'iPhone 7' casings in silver & space gray
Adding to an ever-growing set of parts leaks, a video uploaded on Thursday purports to show the rear casings of two "iPhone 7" units, apparently in line with designs seen elsewhere.
The new casings -- originally posted to Weibo, and highlighted by TechTastic -- are in space gray and silver, and include expected touches such as relocated antenna bands, plus enlarged camera lens openings with their edges extruded from the shell itself, rather than fitted with a separate metal ring as on the iPhone 6s.
At the bottom of each shell are twin speaker ports, supporting widespread claims that Apple is abandoning 3.5-millimeter headphone jacks in favor of Lightning and Bluetooth audio.
If authentic the casings also support the notion that Apple is sticking with the current shade of space gray, instead of turning to a darker shade more closely resembling the iPhone 5.
Apple is expected to ship two iPhone 7 models this fall, most likely in September. Unseen in the new video is the 5.5-inch "Plus" model, which is anticipated to have a dual-lens camera and possibly a Smart Connector.
The new casings -- originally posted to Weibo, and highlighted by TechTastic -- are in space gray and silver, and include expected touches such as relocated antenna bands, plus enlarged camera lens openings with their edges extruded from the shell itself, rather than fitted with a separate metal ring as on the iPhone 6s.
At the bottom of each shell are twin speaker ports, supporting widespread claims that Apple is abandoning 3.5-millimeter headphone jacks in favor of Lightning and Bluetooth audio.
If authentic the casings also support the notion that Apple is sticking with the current shade of space gray, instead of turning to a darker shade more closely resembling the iPhone 5.
Apple is expected to ship two iPhone 7 models this fall, most likely in September. Unseen in the new video is the 5.5-inch "Plus" model, which is anticipated to have a dual-lens camera and possibly a Smart Connector.
Comments
It is obviously fake. Apple would not switch to a 'wart' design (love your analogy). The current design allows the camera module to be easily replaced with the least amount of labor and cost. Apple won't change that. My camera in my iPhone 6 Plus was replaced in 45 minutes at the Apple Store during the recall of the defective camera.
True, I have a black leather case too. At the same time, my 6S Plus is the Space Grey model and the antenna lines merge in nicely. It's mainly the Gold and Rose Gold where the lines stick out jarringly.
Only with better phrasing.
Wonder if people who complain about bands and camera bumps, things they hardly ever look at, realize how stupid the complaints really are.
The lens ring on the iPhone in real life is about the same thickness as the head of a pin (~0.5mm), it's less pronounced in real use than in photos:
It stands out because of the contrast with the back. It has 4 separate surface directions so it catches highlights, especially with flash photography. Using a concave fillet edge has a different appearance and it creates more of a gradual transition. It would have a matte appearance instead of shiny stainless steel so it also has diffused highlights:
That may or may not be better than the ring but in evenly lit environments like outdoors, the color matching would make it stand out less and make the camera seem less stuck onto it and more part of the enclosure. Stainless steel would be harder to chip though. The camera sticking out is a problem every phone manufacturer faces, it's not unique to Apple. Some make the whole phone thicker, some do all sorts of different tapering:
I don't think anyone complained about the iPhone 5 being too thick (it was a massive improvement over the dual glass plated iPhone 4 at almost 2mm difference) and that's pretty much the cause of the camera bump:
The whole phone got thinned out and the camera didn't go with it. I don't think it would make much difference to the bulk if it was 0.5mm or so thicker and you also get an extra ~14% battery. It would look more like this:
They wouldn't even have to go entirely flat, they could do it enough to be able to get away with a truncated cone ring with a low gradient, like an inverted home button.
Sometimes I think Jony Ive might have handed the design of the iPhone on to someone else. They hired Newson for a reason:
It won't be total detachment or total engagement with each product but Jony Ive can only focus attention on so many aspects by himself and Newson won't be paid just to sit around the place, same with the other industrial designers. Jony made it clear he wanted to spend more time with his family and it's a long commute to the office. As long as he retains overall approval of what goes out, that'll be ok.