Next year is Apple's 10th anniversary for iPhones, and the company would want to make a splash.
It’s the middle of August, and all eyes are on Cupertino for Apple’s next big iPhone announcement. The iPhone 7, though, may not be the phone that you’ve been looking for. In fact, looking at Apple’s recent smartphones, it may not even be the phone that you deserve. Judging by the last three iPhones, Apple needs a big one, but the iPhone 7 may not be the promised land that many want it to be. Here’s why.
10 years of iPhones
Anniversaries are meant for big splashes, and Apple would want to make one next year on the tenth anniversary of the iPhone. Japanese Nikkei reports that Apple is planning to redesign the iPhone in 2017, with a glass chassis.
Chronologically, 2017 would be an ‘S’ year for Apple, but the anniversary is expected to bring the number up to '8'. Hence, the iPhone 8 may come with a glass body, which would be a big change from current designs. Nikkei also quoted a source who stated that Apple’s manufacturing partner, Foxconn, has been trying to create a glass body since last year.
The closest we’ve come to witnessing the iPhone 7’s body is the video below, and it really doesn’t impress much.
OLED displays
The Retina displays are all but done. They still look good, but with Samsung and others pushing screen resolutions higher, Apple has a decision to make. While QHD can still be argued against, an OLED panel on an iPhone may work wonders for the phone’s battery.
Using an OLED panel may be the biggest change that we’ve seen in iPhones in years, and that again makes it more suitable for the anniversary issue.
Curved screens?
The OLED panel also opens up possibilities of a curved display, and sure enough, speculations have pointed to the same. Not only does the curved screen add novelty value, it also allows for big changes in the phone’s design itself. That sounds good!
Beta testers of iOS 10 have noticed a new feature with the OS, which tells users not to plug in their charging cables when liquid has been detected. This could point towards enhanced waterproofing on upcoming iPhone variants.
No headphone jack
The rumours till now have suggested that the headphone jack will be dropped on the iPhone 7. Given the accuracy of Apple rumours recently, waiting a year would allow you more options for headphones. Early adopters may be stuck with Apple’s own solutions, and perhaps a spare few more.
Wait for the iPhone 8
From all that we’ve heard about the next iPhone, it doesn’t seem very impressive. Even if the 10-year-anniversary doesn’t matter as much as we think it will, it makes sense to wait and let things evolve. Apple’s track record over the past three years has been lacklustre, and adoption of any of its new technologies and services has been slow.
The iPhone7 may make even lesser sense to an Indian user, since Bluetooth headphones are relatively expensive, and all of Apple’s “innovations” with Homekit and Healthkit are arguably useless to us.
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