Code suggests 'iPhone 8' virtual home button area resizable, can be hidden
A deep dive into recently released HomePod firmware reveals a few bits of information regarding the operation of Apple's "iPhone 8" virtual home button, specifically in relation to app and user interactions.
Developer Steven Troughton Smith on Wednesday took to Twitter to discuss how Apple's iOS will likely handle "iPhone 8" screen real estate dedicated to a digital home button user interface. In essence, the "home button area" can be thought of as periphery UI that expands or minimizes, and shows or hides a home button indicator as needed, he said.
Further, tab bars will extend under the home button UI, while the API contains no options to change asset colors. The latter detail suggests Apple intends to use a high-contrast home button indicator that works with a variety of backgrounds, Troughton Smith posits.
Full screen video minimizes the home button area, presumably in a dynamic fashion similar to hiding content controls in a video player. Certain assets in iOS already operate in such a manner. For example, the bottom toolbar in Safari automatically collapses and reappears when performing a scroll gestures.
It remains to be seen how video will be rendered in full screen on the rumored OLED display. Code uncovered last month point to a working screen resolution of 2,436-by-1,125 pixels, which matches up with predicted hardware specifications from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
In a note to investors in February, Kuo said to expect a 5.8-inch, 2,800-by-1,242 pixel display without home button, 5.1 inches of which would be usable by apps. If the function area minimizes, as Troughton Smith claims, fullscreen video would be rendered at an unusually wide -- or tall -- aspect ratio.
The developer goes on to note there is no evidence that Apple will move other UI elements like toolbars into the function area. It was previously speculated that "iPhone 8" would offload certain buttons to the semi-persistent space to streamline user interaction or save space.
Apple's inadvertent distribution of HomePod firmware last month has yielded the best look yet at the company's forthcoming flagship handset. Previous discoveries include an illustration of the handset revealing a bezel-less design with with sensor notch, support for 4K video capture at 60fps, new machine learning-powered camera features and more.
Earlier today, developers unearthed evidence suggesting "iPhone 8" will use facial recognition hardware to authenticate payments, a major step away from Touch ID fingerprint technology.
Developer Steven Troughton Smith on Wednesday took to Twitter to discuss how Apple's iOS will likely handle "iPhone 8" screen real estate dedicated to a digital home button user interface. In essence, the "home button area" can be thought of as periphery UI that expands or minimizes, and shows or hides a home button indicator as needed, he said.
Further, tab bars will extend under the home button UI, while the API contains no options to change asset colors. The latter detail suggests Apple intends to use a high-contrast home button indicator that works with a variety of backgrounds, Troughton Smith posits.
Full screen video minimizes the home button area, presumably in a dynamic fashion similar to hiding content controls in a video player. Certain assets in iOS already operate in such a manner. For example, the bottom toolbar in Safari automatically collapses and reappears when performing a scroll gestures.
It remains to be seen how video will be rendered in full screen on the rumored OLED display. Code uncovered last month point to a working screen resolution of 2,436-by-1,125 pixels, which matches up with predicted hardware specifications from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
In a note to investors in February, Kuo said to expect a 5.8-inch, 2,800-by-1,242 pixel display without home button, 5.1 inches of which would be usable by apps. If the function area minimizes, as Troughton Smith claims, fullscreen video would be rendered at an unusually wide -- or tall -- aspect ratio.
The developer goes on to note there is no evidence that Apple will move other UI elements like toolbars into the function area. It was previously speculated that "iPhone 8" would offload certain buttons to the semi-persistent space to streamline user interaction or save space.
Apple's inadvertent distribution of HomePod firmware last month has yielded the best look yet at the company's forthcoming flagship handset. Previous discoveries include an illustration of the handset revealing a bezel-less design with with sensor notch, support for 4K video capture at 60fps, new machine learning-powered camera features and more.
Earlier today, developers unearthed evidence suggesting "iPhone 8" will use facial recognition hardware to authenticate payments, a major step away from Touch ID fingerprint technology.
Comments
2. I’d also be surprised if Apple didn’t move back to recent app UI into the lower function area on iPhone 8.
I think this has been done deliberately.
It's the single physical button that returns you to the home screen at any time.
The reason is much simpler. A mistake. In case you missed it, HomePod runs iOS. Employees were beta testing the device at home and a software update was issued for them to download to their HPs. The update was to a newer beta version of iOS 11. This being a closed beta intended only for employees, the needed build flags weren't set which would have obfuscated all of this. Then this beta build (containing everything) was put onto a public server outside of the Apple firewall for the employees to download at home. But public developers noticed it, downloaded it, analyzed, and published their findings.
That's it.
"Apple employs unique tactics to spread information about its products, without having to engage with the media.
This week (Jan/2011), the company released iOS 4.3 Beta for developers, an updated version of its iOS operating system for both iPhone and iPad. Apple’s OS updates tend to add new features, provide stability to existing features and remove options that its users disliked. That’s not all though, the company is increasingly offering specific references within its framework to unannounced features and the release of new products.
This, in effect is Apple’s “controlled leak” process, a process that it would never admit to, but exists all the same."
"In just two days, developers (and writers with developer accounts) are falling over themselves to find references to Apple’s next-generation iPad, a device that is expected to be announced within the next two months. Apple doesn’t provide code, instead developers pore over metadata included in the release, highlighting specific mentions to new iOS features on in many cases, an unreleased product."
For what you claim is a simple mistake it seems to happen regularly. You would think Apple might have caught on by now and taken steps to avoid it if it was "unintentional" eh? Seems very un-Apple-y to allow a mistake to be repeated. One of the several reasons I don't think it's a mistake.
https://thenextweb.com/apple/2011/01/14/how-apples-controlled-leak-policy-keeps-us-hooked/
Gruber's piece on resolution is irrefutable.
kuo is unlikely to have known anything about a software feature and he didn't claim to be describing the UI design. His intent was to describe a physical part.
Other than Kuo being totally confused, the only logical and reasonable explanation is that the physical part as Kuo knew it was larger than the usable display and that the extra part of it is used for something other than display. Kuo called it a "function area". What is it?
LET'S SET OUT A THEORY:
The final part has a cutout at the top of the display and rounded corners. These edges have to be cut with high precision.
These cutting requirements are at least one step beyond the standard OLED production line.
The interesting question is: How is the part held and aligned when it is cut out?
There has to be a way to hold and align the part when making this cut and this has to be done without damaging the part.
My guess is that during the OLED display fabrication some kind of alignment feature was created precisely adjacent to the display. The OLED line produced square cut parts that included this adjacent area. In a subsequent step this adjacent area is used to facilitate the precision cutting of the display perimeter.
My theory is that Kuo had knowledge of the part as it looked before it was cut. He may not have known the purpose of the adjacent area other than it must have one.
Interestingly, a supply chain executive recently posted online about a large yield loss during an OLED cutting process - he later deleted his post.
One of two mistakes. 1) Posting to a publicly visible server or 2) Posting version of code that didn't have the flagged data removed. (They could even have properly removed this flagged data but then inadvertently posted the wrong file)
These flags in the code demonstrate Apple's intent to keep these revealing data points secret.
Then what is the meaning of the recently discovered canPerformMultiBiometrics string? That obviously doesn't mean that the iPhone unlocks automatically when you and your beloved one take a selfie together. Multibiometrics reminds me of multiple biometrics subsytems, FaceID and TouchID for example, as I expect in incoming Macbook Pro w/Touch Bar models. Those Macs already have the TouchID then why the FaceTime camera is connected to the T1 chip driving the TouchID? That may be because another biometrics subsystem that uses the FaceTime camera will be introduced.
The round piece that doesn't fit into the square hole is if Apple was unable to embed TouchID in the display, why didn't it leave that working feature in place as is, i.e. with the physical home button, bottom bezel and the ring? What is the point of removing all that functional bottom part and replacing it with a dumb display extension with only an icon of the Home button without TouchID? You may remove the bottom part altogether provided that you replace it with something as functional as the previous one. If you want to get rid of the bottom part totally including TouchID, then remove that virtual Home indicator too, attach the Home button functionality to the unlock switch and extend the content area of the display to that bottom part. People can still find and touch dock icons even at the very bottom of the screen, since they can press the Home button already...
That canPerformMultiBiometrics string gives me hope about the persistence of TouchID in that bottom part.
There is no incentive for Apple to leak all of its hardware and software surprise for the new iPhone due next month -- essentially every single thing about it. Secrecy is how Apple rolls, not leaking all the details a month before their biggest annual event which is painstakingly rehearsed. Please explain what their gain would be if you believe (without evidence) otherwise.
Robjn nailed it. They already have, which is why you've never seen this sort of accident in 10 years of releases. But oh, it happened this one time, so it must be a conspiracy of controlled leaks. Uh no. That just doesn't make any sense. New public beta APIs are one thing, and obfuscated unannounced tentpole features on a private internal build are another. There's a reason these calls don't exist on the public dev betas for iOS 11, and it wasn't so they could leak them on a private build a week later.
Stoking.
More.
Interest and
Excitement.
Every.
Single.
Day.
While at the same time making certain that current news about any other smartphone manufacturer is overshadowed by yet another possible Apple feature leak. Simply my opinion of course. I have noted you have a different opinion.
Additionally Schiller has gone on record during Gruber's interview that he hates these leaks because it steals the thunder from the hard-working teams who toiled all year to produce them and he believes it's wrong to publish these secrets. So, either some anonymous random on a rumor forum named "gatorguy" knows the truth and Schiller, a top executive of a regulated public company is lying to Gruber's face, or you're wrong. I know which I'd put my money on.
You're starting to sound a lot like Sog with some of your crackpot theories.