If you have not been keeping up with the latest rumors, this may come as a surprise to you. The current talk from the rumor mill is that Apple will be launching not one new iPhone 7 in September but three in total. There is expected to be the standard iPhone 7, the iPhone 7 Plus and also a more premium model called the iPhone 7 Pro. What’s even more surprising about what’s being said is that all three could be on Apple Store shelves by September 16.
So what might the three rumored phones from Apple look like? I’ve gathered up all the rumors.
Design
The base model iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are expected to follow the previous iPhone 6s and 6s Plus where design is concerned.
It is expected that the headphone jack will disappear from all future iPhones starting with the iPhone 7 range and be replaced by what’s called a Smart Connector. Furthermore, there has been a lot of talk over the last few months about the antenna bands, as previously they have hindered the look and feel of the iPhone. A change to them is probably among the most popular design changes wanted by iPhone fans. The good news / rumors being reported about them is that they will be moved to the top of the iPhone 7 and become less prominent.
As for the Home button, there had been some suggestions that this would disappear altogether and be replaced by a Force Touch area on the display itself. However, since then, it has been widely agreed (by those who like to talk about rumors) that this could be one step too far for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus and instead should be featured on the 2017 iPhone 8 handset.
The rumored iPhone 7 Pro is surrounded by a little more fog than the others as some commentators don’t believe the handset exists at all! However, if it does exist, it too could be the unlucky recipient of the tried and tested iPhone 6S and 6S Plus design but with some additional features not being considered for its siblings.
If you’ve been following all the rumors about the iPhone 7, you may remember that one of the most popular early rumors was the possibility of it getting a dual-camera setup. However, that was back when people thought there was only going to be one handset, not three. So as the more premium of the three, the iPhone 7 Pro, looks like it could be the lucky one and get a dual-camera combination.
As for the sizes of all three devices, it is believed that the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 7 Pro will have identical display sizes at 5.5 inches and be around 6.1mm thick. With regard to the base iPhone 7 handset, rumors suggest that it will be slightly slimmer than the iPhone 6s Plus at around 7.1mm.
Display
In terms of display, the base model iPhone 7 is said to have a 4.7-inch display, which is the same as its predecessor, the iPhone 6s. As for the iPhone 7 Plus, it too is said to be sticking with what has worked previously for Apple, which is a 5.5-inch display, the same as was found on the iPhone 6s Plus. To keep things easy, it looks as if Apple will stick with a 5.5-inch display on the premium iPhone 7 Pro, which would be a disappointment in my opinion!
Moving on to the technology incorporated into those displays, it has long been the hope of iPhone users and critics that Apple would switch to OLED in its next line of handsets. According to rumors, this could be the year that Apple ditches its outdated IPS LCD technology. Some rumors are going as far as suggesting that Apple will offer Quad HD displays in the iPhone 7 and Plus, meaning that the base model would have a 543ppi resolution, while the iPhone 7 Plus’ resolution would be 624ppi.
With regard to the iPhone 7 Pro, what its display will be is a little less clear, even from the rumor mill. However, it looks as though this handset could have something else on offer. Maybe this will be Apple’s fabled Apple Pencil, 3D Touch or Force Touch?
Camera
There has been little movement in camera rumors since I last wrote about this last month, and as far as I can tell, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will be the lucky recipients of 12-megapixel rear cameras and also have the following specs: f/2.2, 29mm, Phase detection autofocus, OIS and a dual-LED (dual tone) flash.
As for the iPhone 7 Pro, as I mentioned earlier, it could be the recipient of the fabled dual-camera set-up, which would distinguish it from the other two devices. There is no detail available even via the rumor mill as to how it would work, but I would expect it to offer something completely different to what is on offer on its siblings’ cameras.
Final thoughts
If you’re wondering about software, don’t! There’s no real doubt that they will all be running on iOS 10. Yes, they may all have some differences in software, which will make each stand out in their own right, but nothing yet is known about that.
Which handset stands out: At the moment, it is not clear if the iPhone 7 Pro will exist at all. However, with the inclusion of a dual-camera set-up and the possibility of it having something even more advanced than a Quad HD display, it would be difficult to suggest that either the base model or the 7 Plus could compete with it.
