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iPhone 8 rumor roundup: Everything you need to know
When is iPhone 8 being released? What will the specs be? Will it have special features? Here’s everything we know!
iPhone 8 — iPhone X — whatever Apple ends up calling the next and “tenth anniversary” iPhone, it’s expected next fall, and with a new design and new set of features. But what will they be? This article is continuously updated to include the latest news and rumors. Bookmark it, save it, share it, and check back often!
May 26, 2017: Score one more rumor for Touch ID beneath the screen
Rumors have been going back and forth over where exactly Apple will put Touch ID in iPhone 8. Everyone wants it under the front glass, embedded in the display, but the tech is hard enough other rumors suggest Apple might have to settle for the back or lose it entirely.
Now, randomly accurate rumor site Digitimes adds one to the gossip pile for the front:
Apple will use an optical fingerprint sensor to enable authentication directly on the screen, said the report. Additiona…
When is iPhone 8 being released? What will the specs be? Will it have special features? Here's everything we know!
iPhone 8 — iPhone X — whatever Apple ends up calling the next and "tenth anniversary" iPhone, it's expected next fall, and with a new design and new set of features. But what will they be? This article is continuously updated to include the latest news and rumors. Bookmark it, save it, share it, and check back often!May 26, 2017: Score one more rumor for Touch ID beneath the screen
Rumors have been going back and forth over where exactly Apple will put Touch ID in iPhone 8. Everyone wants it under the front glass, embedded in the display, but the tech is hard enough other rumors suggest Apple might have to settle for the back or lose it entirely. Now, randomly accurate rumor site Digitimes adds one to the gossip pile for the front:Apple will use an optical fingerprint sensor to enable authentication directly on the screen, said the report. Additionally, the new iPhone devices will also come with invisible infrared image sensors to enhance the functionality of high-pixel camera and to enable AR applications.The information is credited to TSMC, one of Apple's frequent chip fabricators. Weigh it as you will.
May 5, 2017: This is what one leaker claims iPhone 8 might look like
Rendered images and videos, claimed to be based on CAD designs of an iPhone 8 prototype leaked from the factory, have been posted online by Gear IndiaApple has been testing out several prototype designs for the iPhone 8. For the same reason, at this time, we are not in a position to confirm if the renders showcased above indeed belong to the final design that was selected by Apple. That said, there are chances that the final design of the iPhone 8 will closely match the renders shown above with minor differences. The model you see in the renders measure roughly 143.5 x 70.9 x 7.7mm (8.9mm with back camera bump). There is also some confusion at this point regarding the positioning of the sensors and the camera lenses on the front fascia.Given the seemingly conflicting rumors, along with the lack of parts leaks from the supply chain, some believe Apple hasn't yet come to a final design decision or begun manufacturing ramp up. Whatever the reason, we should learn more as fall approaches.
What will the next iPhone be called?
- iPhone: 2007
- iPhone 3G: 2008
- iPhone 3GS: 2009
- iPhone 4: 2010
- iPhone 4s: 2011
- iPhone 5: 2012
- iPhone 5s: 2013
- iPhone 6: 2014
- iPhone 6s: 2015
- iPhone 7: 2016
Will there be an iPhone 8 Plus?
- iPhone 6 Plus: 2014
- iPhone 6s Plus: 2015
- iPhone 7 Plus: 2016
When will the iPhone 8 be released?
Update: Despite previous rumors of severe delays, a new report (via Digitimes) claims that after a September introduction, all three of Apple's rumored new phones for 2017, including the iPhone 8, will launch in October. While that would indeed be later than previous years, it is said that actual production of devices will happen on schedule.
Since the iPhone 5, Apple has announced every new iPhone during a special event held the first or second Tuesday or Wednesday of September.- iPhone 5: September 12, 2012
- iPhone 5s: September 10, 2013
- iPhone 6: September 9, 2014
- iPhone 6s: September 9, 2015
- iPhone 7: September 7, 2016
- iPhone 5: September 21, 2012
- iPhone 5S: September 20, 2013
- iPhone 6: September 19, 2014
- iPhone 6s: September 25, 2015
- iPhone 7: September 16, 2016
For the 5.8-inch OLED version, the biggest bottleneck remains integrating an under-glass fingerprint sensor into the display— the current yield rate of Apple's in-house AuthenTec solution remains low and AAPL seems unwilling to use other vendors' products.Arcuri theorizes that Apple could avoid delays entirely by ditching Touch ID entirely in lieu of facial recognition (not likely) or move the fingerprint scanner to the rear of the casing, but Apple will most likely just accept the delay and move forward with small quantities (a la the AirPods and Apple Pencil). This isn't entirely unusual for the high-end iPhone model, either: Apple's Jet Black iPhone 7 was under severe shipping constraints when it first launched, as well.
KGI Securities' Ming-Chi Kuo (via 9to5Mac), believes iPhone 8 will prove difficult enough to manufacture that we won't see it, even in constrained quantities, until October or November 2017:
KGI blames several 'significant hardware upgrades' in the iPhone 8 for the delays. This includes a custom OLED display panel, a custom Apple A11 10-nanometer SoC, an all-new designed 3D Touch module and 3D sensing cameras.Kuo (via MacRumors, since doubled down on his belief iPhone 8 will be ramped up later than usual and be severely constrained at launch:
According to Kuo, who titled his note "Rising probability of worst-case scenario for iPhone shipments," production ramp-up of the iPhone 8 could be delayed to "as late as October-November," a departure from Apple's traditional August to September ramp-up period. The result will be "severe supply shortages" that persist for "a while" after the new iPhone models are introduced in September. To be clear, Kuo continues to believe Apple will introduce the iPhone in September, but he suggests there's a strong possibility the device will be hard to come by for several months following its release.Rumors of delays typically presage every new iPhone release and while products are sometimes constrained, like iPhone 7 Plus, none have been pushed back past the recent September launch period. (iPhone 4s, in 2011, was the last to launch in October.) Given the incredible amount of cutting edge technology Apple plans to include in iPhone 8, however, no timeline could reasonably be considered certain.
What can we expect in the iPhone 8 design?
Update: DigiTimes, all three of Apple's rumored 2017 iPhones, the iPhone 7s, iPhone 7s Plus, and iPhone 8 will feature reinforced glass bodies with metal frames, with the iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus featuring aluminum frames, and the iPhone 8 sporting a stainless steel one. The iPhone 8 is also the only one of the three models said to have an AMOLED display.
At any given point in time, Apple is working several years ahead on the iPhone line. Upcoming models may already be in the testing or prototype stages while future models may be little more than components attached to boards. Sometimes multiple versions will also exist, some more conservative, others more audacious. What eventually ships depends on what can reliably be produced given the limits of technology and economics. Since 2008 Apple has also followed a "tick-tock" cycle for iPhones. On the "tick" year the company unveils a new design and on the "tock" year the company takes that same design to its limits. In 2016, though, Apple broke from that pattern and released a second tock — iPhone 7.- iPhone 3G: 2008 — Plastic shell.
- iPhone 4: 2010 — Antenna band and glass back.
- iPhone 5: 2012 — 16:9 aspect ratio, chamfered edges.
- iPhone 6: 2014 — Bigger screens, rounded edges.
- iPhone 7: 2015 - New finishes.
iPhone 8 Dummy (This is CNC model according to Foxconn) Back is 2.5D Glass.#iPhone8 #iPhoneX #iPhoneEdition pic.twitter.com/Z8mH7b7z4r
— Benjamin Geskin (@VenyaGeskin1) April 23, 2017
Wait, Touch ID on the back of iPhone 8... like... like... Android?
What colors will the iPhone 8 be offered in?
- iPhone 5s: 2013 — Gold.
- iPhone 6s: 2015 — Rose gold.
- iPhone 7: 2016 — Black and jet black.
- iPhone 7: 2017 - (Product) RED.
More bluntly, not only is Apple not using any new ceramics manufacturing technology in the new Watch Edition, they are not even utilizing the primary patent the original Quora article pins most of its extrapolations on - that patent described a vacuum liquid slurry casting process for ceramics. The Edition watch uses a very common pressed powder forming method. In short, not only does the ceramic Watch quash any hopes of a ceramic iPhone, I think it actually indicates that Apple isn't chasing down ceramics for iPhone production any time on the horizon.
What specs will the iPhone 8 have?
Update: A Goldman Sachs analyst note (via MacRumors) claims that Apple will release the iPhone 8 in 128GB and 256GB variations for $999 and $1,099, respectively.
Since Apple introduced the company's first branded system-on-a-chip (SoC) in 2010, every new iPhone has come with a new A-series chipset. If Apple sticks to that pattern, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will ship with Apple A11 processors. New SoC typically take advantage of better processes that let them be faster and more powerful but also more energy efficient. Apple has also been adding coprocessors to handle motion voice activation, and now big.LITTLE fusion. A11 could further build on those capabilities as well, including implementing artificial intelligence and machine learning at the silicon level. The custom CPUs Apple has been producing have gone from Swift to Cyclone to Typhoon to Twister, so... Tropical Storm next? Hurricane? Rumors also persist that Apple is working on custom GPUs and even modems as well, which would allow the company to take full control of everything from graphics to radios. Recent reports indicate that Intel will be supplying at least some of the modems for this year's iPhone lineup.