Home button on Apple's waterproof 'iPhone 7' won't click, will use haptic feedback instead - report

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iPhone edited July 2016
Much like the Force Touch trackpad on Apple's latest MacBooks, the home button on the company's next-generation iPhone won't physically click when pressed -- instead, it'll simulate a click with vibration, a pair of new rumors claim.




The alleged change to Apple's so-called "iPhone 7" could aid in making the device more waterproof than ever, according to Storm.mg. Citing the new rumor, Macotakara chimed in and said its own sources have also claimed the new home button will no longer physically depress when pushed.

By making the home button static, Apple would open up the possibility of thinner-than-ever iPhone designs. This year's model, colloquially known as the "iPhone 7," is already expected to be the slimmest model yet -- potentially as thin as just 6 millimeters.

If the home button on the next iPhone does not physically move, it would borrow from a concept Apple already established last year with its Force Touch trackpad. Rather than physically clicking, the trackpad found on the 12-inch MacBook and new MacBook Pros simulates the feeling of a click with haptic feedback.

The Force Touch trackpad --?along with the Apple Watch and 3D Touch display on iPhone 6s series --?also senses pressure, distinguishing a simple tap from a firm press. A non-moving iPhone home button would presumably also need to do the same, considering the Touch ID fingerprint sensor can be used in apps, and on the home screen in iOS 10, without actually pressing the button.

The prospect of a so-called "Force Touch ID" or "3D Touch ID" home button on the next iPhone has been rumored a few times before, but this week's latest pair of reports would seem to suggest that the feature could in fact be a reality. Apple is expected to take the wraps off of its "iPhone 7" series --?also rumored to be called the iPhone 6SE --?in September.




In addition to a revamped home button, the next iPhone is also widely expected to ditch the 3.5-millimeter headphone jack. The larger 5.5-inch "Plus" variant is also expected to feature a dual-lens camera, and potentially a magnetic Smart Connector for charging.

Finally, Tuesday's report from Macotakara also suggested that the next iPhone will come in a total of five colors, with a dark shade of black akin to the latest Mac Pro joining the mix. The other four --?space gray, gold, rose gold and silver -- will allegedly remain.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 37
    curtis hannahcurtis hannah Posts: 1,833member
    Been hoping this for years. It was obvious when "force touch" track pads came out.
    1983doozydozenDeelronTurboPGT
  • Reply 2 of 37
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,054member
    But but... Samsung had waterproofing phones for years...well sort of...and failed water tests.
    Apple do things the right way, not to be the first. I appreciate they take time to add this feature even though I don't really care of waterproof.
    mike1chazbcn
  • Reply 3 of 37
    ericthehalfbeeericthehalfbee Posts: 4,486member
    Force Touch on the MacBook works great. If you ask someone to try it who has never seen one they'd swear it was a physical button under the trackpad. If the iPhone version feels the same then this will be a fantastic update. 
    1983doozydozenTurboPGT
  • Reply 4 of 37
    doozydozendoozydozen Posts: 539member
    6.0mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.1mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    edited July 2016 mike1brucemcpatchythepiratenolamacguy
  • Reply 5 of 37
    dukedarksidedukedarkside Posts: 6member
    So much for the wrong narrative of "no big" upgrade. Just because it looks similar? come on, tech people are supposed to be better than that...

    I also doubt the 6SE naming. That would make absolutely no sense
    doozydozensupadav03DeelronchazbcnTurboPGT
  • Reply 6 of 37
    elijahgelijahg Posts: 2,759member
    Force touch on the MB is pretty cool, though I don't find myself using it regularly. iOS 10 makes much more use of 3D Touch on the 6S, and I use it there a fair bit. 

    No doubt Apple will sacrifice more battery life if they do make it thinner. I'm sure people would rather a phone that's actually useful for longer over shaving off another millimetre. Problem is too at the current thickness, just a millimetre reduction is around 25% less battery thickness. 
    cnocbuijay-t
  • Reply 7 of 37
    elijahgelijahg Posts: 2,759member
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    14 hours?! Either my phone's battery is very broken or yours is on steroids. I get around 5 hours of "heavy" use. It's very disappointing. 
    jay-tHabi_tweet
  • Reply 8 of 37
    kidchino78kidchino78 Posts: 10member
    I'm all in for this. The home button on every iPhone I've ever had has always gotten a little wonky. They've never outright failed but they sometimes don't register presses.
    chazbcn
  • Reply 9 of 37
    kpomkpom Posts: 660member
    Sounds good. I like how the trackpad works in the MacBook.
    doozydozen
  • Reply 10 of 37
    seankillseankill Posts: 566member
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    My iPhone 6 Plus battery is about right. It would suck to have the iPhone 6S battery (not the plus).
    elijahg
  • Reply 11 of 37
    tjwolftjwolf Posts: 424member
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    Sure, 6mm would be an accomplishment (ahem, what's the thickness of the iPod Touch again?).  But this is the first time I hear that rumor - pretty much all rumor rags have suggested the upcoming iPhone to have virtually the same dimensions as the 6s.  Where did this author get the 6mm rumor from?
    doozydozen
  • Reply 12 of 37
    rogifan_newrogifan_new Posts: 4,297member
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    Why do we need an iPhone thinner than the 6S? I think most people would agree they want better battery life without having to spend $$ on a battery case. I wish Apple would get off this thinness as a selling feature kick. Thin isn't everything.
    elijahgcnocbuiHabi_tweet
  • Reply 13 of 37
    nhughesnhughes Posts: 770editor
    tjwolf said:
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    Sure, 6mm would be an accomplishment (ahem, what's the thickness of the iPod Touch again?).  But this is the first time I hear that rumor - pretty much all rumor rags have suggested the upcoming iPhone to have virtually the same dimensions as the 6s.  Where did this author get the 6mm rumor from?
    The link is embedded in the story where I mentioned 6mm.
  • Reply 14 of 37
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    Expected, but glad to finally see it pop up as a rumour.
  • Reply 15 of 37
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    repressthis said:
    6mm - rumored 2016 iPhone 
    7.3mm - 6S
    6.9mm - 6
    7.6mm - 5, 5S
    8.9mm - 5C
    9.4mm - 4, 4S
    12.2mm - 3G, 3GS
    11.7mm - iPhone

    That's would make for a substantial reduction in chassis thickness. Yes people, that would represent impressive innovation. All facets of design must come together to produce a markedly thinner iPhone. Buy a battery case if 14 hours of heavy use or 35 hours of light use isn't enough. For the rest of the world, 6mm will be delightful.
    I remember being amazed at how thin the original iPhone was.  To be half of that, along with the legionfold improvements... pretty amazing how far we've come.
    doozydozennolamacguyDeelron
  • Reply 16 of 37
    tjwolftjwolf Posts: 424member
    nhughes said:
    tjwolf said:
    Sure, 6mm would be an accomplishment (ahem, what's the thickness of the iPod Touch again?).  But this is the first time I hear that rumor - pretty much all rumor rags have suggested the upcoming iPhone to have virtually the same dimensions as the 6s.  Where did this author get the 6mm rumor from?
    The link is embedded in the story where I mentioned 6mm.
    Thanks - missed the link.  But looking there, that rumor is about a year old!  Surely, there'd be a more recent rumor on that front, given that everyone else *now* thinks the iPhone 7 will be similar in dimensions to the 6s?
  • Reply 17 of 37
    nhughesnhughes Posts: 770editor
    tjwolf said:
    nhughes said:
    The link is embedded in the story where I mentioned 6mm.
    Thanks - missed the link.  But looking there, that rumor is about a year old!  Surely, there'd be a more recent rumor on that front, given that everyone else *now* thinks the iPhone 7 will be similar in dimensions to the 6s?
    The general form — screen size, design — is supposed to be similar to the 6s. Rumors have consistently said the phone will be thinner but have been largely nonspecific. The year-old rumor from Ming-Chi Kuo pegged the size between 6mm and 6.5mm. I suspect that will prove accurate.
    doozydozen
  • Reply 18 of 37
    19831983 Posts: 1,225member
    This is good news...if true. Apple's haptic feedback works superbly. When I first tried it out on the rMB last year. I really couldn't tell the difference between said haptic feedback on the Macbook and a 'real' click on my late 2013 rMBP.
    doozydozenTurboPGT
  • Reply 19 of 37
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    An eneivtable evolution for iPhones. Hope all new iPads this year have same.
    edited July 2016
  • Reply 20 of 37
    jony0jony0 Posts: 378member
    Maybe that's why they have to remove the earphone jack to make room for the taptic engine, unless they just use the same engine as the screen. It's not overly obvious where the haptic vibration comes from on the 6S, they could simply send the same or similar signal as a force touch, just slightly different to distinguish it.
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