'iPhone 13' will have a smaller notch according to known leaker

AppleInsider

The "iPhone 13" may have a reduced or "shorter" notch according to a leaker, though such rumors have persisted about the iPhone since Apple first introduced the controversial design.

A concept from Instagram user iSpazio showing a smaller notch

The "iPhone 13" is well into development even though it is not due until fall 2021 and the next iPhone is set to be announced on October 13. Leaks from early development happen from time to time, but things could easily be changed before the device is finalized.

A Twitter user known as Ice Universe shared a simple tweet suggesting the "iPhone 13" will have a shorter notch. They followed up the tweet with an illustration of what they meant by "shorter."

iPhone13 still continues the notch design, but notch is shorter.

-- Ice universe (@UniverseIce)

October 7, 2020

Leaks leading up to the "iPhone 12" suggested that the 2020 iPhone could have a smaller notch, but the latest leaks show that not to be the case. Apple does seem interested in shrinking the notch or removing it completely, however, as renowned leaker Ming-Chi Kuo has previously rumored.

Ice Universe says the notch will be shorter, which means it will maintain the same width across the top of the screen, but have less height overall. Such a change would mean more vertical space for user content, though how much actual difference such a small change would make is unclear.

Ice Universe has shared Apple related leaks before, including supposed benchmarks of the A14 and information regarding 120Hz refresh on iPhone displays.

Xed

It was going to happen eventually and this seems like a reasonable amount of time to reduce the components without losing functionality.

tmay

Xed said:

It was going to happen eventually and this seems like a reasonable amount of time to reduce the components without losing functionality.

As small as that Face ID / camera's assembly appears, I could see it integrated into iPad's and Mac's in the near term. I'd still like to see both FaceID and TouchID for resilience over the span of time that COVID19 will be with us (years).

hentaiboy

On a related subject, does anyone know if this method of using Face ID with a mask works?

https://9to5mac.com/2020/04/08/iphone-how-to-use-face-id-with-mask/

Xed

tmay said:

Xed said:

It was going to happen eventually and this seems like a reasonable amount of time to reduce the components without losing functionality.

As small as that Face ID / camera's assembly appears, I could see it integrated into iPad's and Mac's in the near term. I'd still like to see both FaceID and TouchID for resilience over the span of time that COVID19 will be with us (years).

I hope it comes to the Mac soon, but I have doubts that the components are small enough for the current thins and bevel design of the Mac display at the edges.

flydog

I was skeptical of this rumor until I saw the cartoon drawing showing the smaller notch. Now I'm a total believer. 

wood1208

Having TouchID on power button and long standing rumor of under screen TouchID; not sure the shrinking FaceID notch rumor has more attention ?

M68000

Some people may even like the notch.  Many have become used to it.  Some people hate it.  So contrast all that with the regular rectangular screen.  I don’t think anybody has ever said they hate rectangular screens? What is wrong with having a very small bezel above the screen all the way across for that Face ID and other stuff?

Xed

M68000 said:

Some people may even like the notch.  Many have become used to it.  Some people hate it.  So contrast all that with the regular rectangular screen.  I don’t think anybody has ever said they hate rectangular screens? What is wrong with having a very small bezel above the screen all the way across for that Face ID and other stuff?

Why does there have to be something wrong for a better solution to be considered? For those that want to maximize their screen area for a given device then it's objectively better to minimize unused glass on the front for the display for UI elements. The alternative is going back to a design where part of the rectangular display is used for the status bar and in no way does it take it away form playing an unobstructed video.

StrangeDays

M68000 said:

Some people may even like the notch.  Many have become used to it.  Some people hate it.  So contrast all that with the regular rectangular screen.  I don’t think anybody has ever said they hate rectangular screens? What is wrong with having a very small bezel above the screen all the way across for that Face ID and other stuff?

With a “forehead” as you describe, you increase the mass of the device, dedicating some to non-screen area to hold sensors. We had that originally. With devices like iPhone X and later, they put the sensors in part of the space used by the screen’s area, eliminating the need to add additional mass to the device, at the cost of some loss of screen. However the surface-to-screen ratio is favorable. 

Personally the sensors of FaceID don’t bother me, I don’t notice them anymore than my rear-view mirror cutting into my windscreen. 

johnbear

Hopefully by iPhone 25 we won’t have the notch;)

indieshack

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

Xed

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

Killer? HAHA

mattinoz

https://www.macrumors.com/2020/04/20/leaked-iphone-12-schematics-smaller-notch/

Why would 13 revert to 11 speakers after they engineered it smaller for 12?

StrangeDays

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

Nah, you just don't know Apple very well. Incremental improvement is how they roll. Gruber wrote about it over a decade ago:

https://www.macworld.com/article/1151235/macs/apple-rolls.html

...iterative product development is the name of the game. It’s how we got from the original iPhone/Mac/Watch/whatever to the current versions, or iterations. They don't pop out of a clamshell, fully formed.

tmay

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

"Killer" foldable screens?

This is the part in the evolutionary cycle of a product called the "bleeding edge", with a few fractions of a percentage point in sales compared to the smartphone market in general, and most of these devices are produced at a net loss to the respective companies that market them. Many of those products will have short lifespans due to design and manufacturing issues that bedevil their owners. 

Apple has the luxury of taking their time to develop and market foldables. Might as well let all those "early leaders" make all of the mistakes.

avon b7

StrangeDays said:

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

Nah, you just don't know Apple very well. Incremental improvement is how they roll. Gruber wrote about it over a decade ago:

https://www.macworld.com/article/1151235/macs/apple-rolls.html

...iterative product development is the name of the game. It’s how we got from the original iPhone/Mac/Watch/whatever to the current versions, or iterations. They don't pop out of a clamshell, fully formed.

It's also how Apple got left behind in key areas and has been scrambling to catch up. 

The Apple of 10 years ago is not the Apple of today. iPhone businesses model has also changed radically. 

avon b7

tmay said:

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

"Killer" foldable screens?

This is the part in the evolutionary cycle of a product called the "bleeding edge", with a few fractions of a percentage point in sales compared to the smartphone market in general, and most of these devices are produced at a net loss to the respective companies that market them. Many of those products will have short lifespans due to design and manufacturing issues that bedevil their owners. 

Apple has the luxury of taking their time to develop and market foldables. Might as well let all those "early leaders" make all of the mistakes.

Most of those users are actually so well off that they could upgrade their $2,000 phones every six months without battingnan eyelid.

What issues have bedeviled those users? 

They are on the bleeding edge because they want to be. It is because of them that prices will come down over time. Software will also improve by leaps and bounds although by all accounts that area is already garnering praise from reviewers. 

Xed

avon b7 said:

tmay said:

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

"Killer" foldable screens?

This is the part in the evolutionary cycle of a product called the "bleeding edge", with a few fractions of a percentage point in sales compared to the smartphone market in general, and most of these devices are produced at a net loss to the respective companies that market them. Many of those products will have short lifespans due to design and manufacturing issues that bedevil their owners. 

Apple has the luxury of taking their time to develop and market foldables. Might as well let all those "early leaders" make all of the mistakes.

Most of those users are actually so well off that they could upgrade their $2,000 phones every six months without battingnan eyelid.

What issues have bedeviled those users? 

They are on the bleeding edge because they want to be. It is because of them that prices will come down over time. Software will also improve by leaps and bounds although by all accounts that area is already garnering praise from reviewers. 

Android still doesn't have a decent tablet OS but we're suppose to believe that they will have the SW because the screen now folds open for a handful of people who want to upgrade worn out devices within 6 months. You get more funny every day.

avon b7

Xed said:

avon b7 said:

tmay said:

indieshack said:

Honestly, who cares about the notch - is it 2017 still?
The bigger problem for Apple is that Motorola, Samsung and others have started selling killer foldable screen devices and Apple is still making incremental changes to an old form factor (ok, they'll have different edges).

"Killer" foldable screens?

This is the part in the evolutionary cycle of a product called the "bleeding edge", with a few fractions of a percentage point in sales compared to the smartphone market in general, and most of these devices are produced at a net loss to the respective companies that market them. Many of those products will have short lifespans due to design and manufacturing issues that bedevil their owners. 

Apple has the luxury of taking their time to develop and market foldables. Might as well let all those "early leaders" make all of the mistakes.

Most of those users are actually so well off that they could upgrade their $2,000 phones every six months without battingnan eyelid.

What issues have bedeviled those users? 

They are on the bleeding edge because they want to be. It is because of them that prices will come down over time. Software will also improve by leaps and bounds although by all accounts that area is already garnering praise from reviewers. 

Android still doesn't have a decent tablet OS but we're suppose to believe that they will have the SW because the screen now folds open for a handful of people who want to upgrade worn out devices within 6 months. You get more funny every day.

Why would you need a tablet OS on a folding phone?

Read some of the reviews. For either Samsung or Huawei foldables. Software out of the gate is good from a user perspective and simply getting better with every new software release. As is running two or three apps at the same time (no need for an Android Tablet OS in that case anyway) Of course Android tablets themselves continue to be released and Huawei especially is showing growth. Have you actually read of users complaining about software on their folding phones?

Let's not even consider that HarmonyOS 2.0 will reach developers in less than two months and will automatically resolve the aspect ratio conundrum across all devices (cars included). It is one of the major features of the OS along with a virtualised distributed bus and distributed security. 

spice-boy

See Apple is not a monopoly suffocating innovation, we have a smaller notch possibly coming in the near future. Apple thanks for showing the US Congress and the non-faithful posting here they are or soon will be wrong.