Apple is preparing for the iPhone 7 launch this September. Behind the scene, the company has already been working on the next year’s iPhone 8. The US Patent and Trademarks Office (USPTO) has published a patent application from Apple, which indicates that the iPhone 8 may sport a dual-SIM tray. The patent filing also describes how the “Dual SIM Dual Standby” system would work.
How to Dual-SIM setup would work
The 2017 iPhone is widely expected to bring major improvements to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the iPhone. In its patent filing, Apple describes a smartphone with a Dual SIM Dual Active system that can use two SIMs and two radios to maintain two active voice calls at the same time, reports Patently Apple. You can receive a second voice call on the second SIM while the first is still on on the first SIM.
If you choose to accept the second voice call, the first one will be placed on hold or standby. Patently Apple says the iPhone may include two SIMs, two antennas, a single transmitter, and at least two receivers. The functionality may not be limited to only future iPhones. Apple describes in its patent filing that it could also be incorporated in Apple Watch, MacBooks, wearables and other devices.
iPhone 8 to feature OLED screen, iris scanner
Apple had filed the patent application in the first quarter of 2016. Note that the Cupertino company files several patent applications every year, but only a few make it to the finished products. So, it is too early to say whether this technology would be incorporated in the iPhone 8. Recently, reports coming out of the supply chain claimed that Taiwan-based TSMC has won the exclusive contract to supply the A11 chips the next year’s iPhone. The processor will be based on TSMC’s 10nm FinFET process technology.
The iPhone 8 is also expected to feature an OLED display. Samsung already uses OLED screens in its flagship smartphones. Apple is reportedly in talks with LG Electronics and Samsung to supply OLED panels for the iPhone 8. The 2017 iPhone is also rumored to incorporate an iris scanner that will let you unlock your device simply by looking at it. Reports suggest that the iris scanner will be incorporated in the front camera.
