It’s Apple rumor season. Apple’s newest iPhone is around the corner, with the announcement event happening Tuesday, September 12. In the past, Apple’s kept a tight lid on leaks and information surrounding the announcement of a new device. This year isn’t like before; there are dozens of rumors flying around. A lot of the leaks are coming directly from Apple’s firmware on iOS 11 and the upcoming HomePod.
If you haven’t followed the rumors as I have, one thing you’ll need to know is; Apple is going to release a radically different iPhone on Tuesday whether it’s called the iPhone 7s, iPhone 8, or the iPhone X. I’ve rounded up the rumors of the iPhone 8, and for the most part most are accurate because they’ve come from Apple firmware leaks.
Screen
Apple’s HomePod firmware all but confirmed the next iPhone would have an edge-to-edge display similar to Samsung’s S8 or LG’s V30. From the leak, we see Apple is using a top notch to house the camera and proximity sensor similar to the Essential Phones small cutout.
Confirmed: Apple’s firmware confirmed the screen through a small icon, and some YouTubers have acquired mock screens since.
Touch ID
Touch ID has become a core part of unlocking and verifying your identity on iOS and Mac, but Apple may change all it on the iPhone 8. There are three distinct rumors around what will happen to Touch ID.
- The first rumor is how Apple will hide the Touch ID sensor under the screen, allowing for the edge-to-edge display. No one has perfected this technology so it is a big gamble if Apple can.
- Apple might move the Touch ID sensor to the back of the phone, think of an Android phone for reference.
- Apple will remove Touch ID entirely because they cannot get the tech under the screen right nor do they want a sensor on the back.
Unconfirmed: We know the least about Touch ID. It’s unclear what Apple is going to do, nor is there any info in the firmware leaks. This rumor is the least known one.
Face ID
Samsung phones have toyed around with face unlock for a couple of years now, but now Apple is going to throw their hat in the arena. Face ID recently leaked on the iOS 11 firmware. The leaked showed the UI that you’ll encounter when you’re setting up Face ID. Many speculate the new authentication method will replace Touch ID, but I see it as unlikely.
Confirmed: We can see 99% say that the iPhone 8 will have some face unlock features, but it’s unclear if it’ll replace Touch ID.
Price
Recent rumors point to Apple pricing the iPhone 8 at $999 or more. Some of the price increase could come from the screen which will use OLED technology instead of LCD. For comparison, the Note 8 is $999, but the S8 is priced fairly at $730. Depending on how much technology they pack into the phone is whether the price will be high.
Unconfirmed: While many experts have floated a price increase many claims Apple will have a lower cost option too, which points to no increase in the end. Apple wouldn’t want to unnecessarily increase costs or increase the product line which could create confusion.
Wireless Charging
Once again, according to some Apple code, the iPhone 8 will have wireless charging. While previous rumors have pointed to wireless charging, Apple appears to have finally adopted the QI wireless charging standard. If true, Apple taking a universal standard is a first but also nice they’ll play with other chargers.
Confirmed: The source code references the wireless charging and would help Apple move away from ports altogether.
Ship Date
Speculation is Apple won’t have some of the technology ready for the iPhone 8, so they’ll ship the phone later than before. A lot of this rumor revoles around if Apple will use Touch ID under the screen or if Face ID isn’t 100% ready. The ship date also has a lot to do with the price jump which is meant to prevent a massive influx of iPhone buyers on day one.
Unconfirmed: Apple’s supply chain has been ready for new iPhone’s in the past, but this year they may not be as prepared as before.
TL; DR
Apple could do anything on stage Tuesday, but we know a few things for sure. The next iPhone will bring an edge-to-edge screen, it’ll have Face ID, and it’ll have wireless charging. Besides those confirmed facts, we don’t know much about price, ship date, or Touch ID.
We do have a few other rumors swilring around the Apple Watch, Airpods, and the HomePod so it’ll be a long and evetful keynote on Tuesday!
Let me know what you think about all the new iPhone 8 rumors! Do you think Apple will change the iPhone as much as these firmware leaks say or is this all a game of misdirection?