If iPhone release trends are to be trusted the iPhone 7 is just around the corner, rumours are certainly hinting at a “Fall 2016” release date putting it squarely up against the Samsung Galaxy Note 6. With an upcoming release date comes a flood of information from the rumour mill.
Aside from the rumour regarding Apple dropping the naming convention and just calling the 7 the iPhone Pro, the biggest rumour is the body of the device. If the singing birds are to be believed some major changes are coming to Apple’s premier mobile device.
The first major change comes in the form of an adaption of a tried and tested mobile favourite. If sources are to be believed Apple is preparing to remove the 3.5mm headphone jack, replacing it with a lightning dock for both charging and the fitting of headphones. Apparently Apple is working on a set of ear buds with a lightning connector to go alongside.
It would fit with the concept of Apple products being exclusively Apple – they’re notorious for attempting to restrict their devices to Apple backed peripherals.
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The second major change rumour comes from Allen Horng. He’s the Chairman and the Chief Executive of Catcher Technology, who’ve been typically in charge of Apple’s iPhone chassis manufacture. At the company’s annual shareholder meeting he claimed that Apple will make its 2017 iPhone with a glass casing.
He stated that the device would need to be reinforced with a metal frame and require “Advanced Processing Technology” from Catcher Technology. The idea being the case would be made from a single piece of glass. Although only one iPhone model is expected to have this new look.
The move is a radical change from Apple’s consistent rounded plastic/metal backed look, and starts heading down a route mostly trodden by Sony with its Xperia line. It would certainly shake up the iPhone line.
Blueprints have also surfaced of what is claimed to be an iPhone 7 with a smart connector which would certainly hint at more of a focus as your iPhone as your central piece of technology. Although these rumours have been unable to be certified.
There are unfortunately no hints of any specifications yet, although once again if trends are to be believed it’ll be more powerful and far more efficient that the previous iterations could hope to be. Expectations are for the iPhone 7 models to include the next generation of A10 processors.
It’s almost guaranteed we’ll receive a gamut of spec rumours before the “Fall 2016” release, and hopefully final confirmation on just how many 7 models there will actually be. If Apple are expected to carry on as of late however, then less is more.