We’re still months away from the launch of the iPhone 8 — or whatever Apple calls its tenth anniversary model — but now some photos which supposedly show the final design have surfaced. There aren’t any real surprises in them, as they show a phone that looks pretty much like every rumor we’ve ever heard about it. If anything, they show just how boring the phone’s design might be, even if it matches most of the rumors precisely.
Photos of an iPhone 8 mockup?
BGR says it obtained the photos which purport to show the iPhone 8’s design exclusively without giving any kind of a hint as to what kind of source might have sent the photos. The pictures are of a mockup of the phone that is believed to have been made using real finalized schematics leaked from the factories where the phone will be built.
If the iPhone 8 does indeed turn out to be like the mockup that’s in these photos, it will have a 2.5D curved glass panels sandwiching its interior. The mockup features a rounded stainless steel frame for a smooth design and a large bump for the camera, which is expected to be a dual-lens module. However, the camera bump is vertical on the mockup, while the iPhone 7 Plus had a horizontal bump. The raised area is also believed to hold an LED flash and microphone with the dual-lens camera for the iPhone 8.
About that fingerprint scanner…
The photos also show that again, Apple is planning to leave out the 3.5mm headphone jack. As BGR notes, one thing we don’t get a clue about in the mockup is what Apple is planning on doing about the fingerprint scanner. The photos don’t show a sensor on the back of the phone, which would be a relief for those who were upset about the idea.
You may recall that we heard a while back that Apple and its suppliers were having problems with the tech used to embed the fingerprint scanner in the display of the iPhone 8. Supposedly, one of the options was to put the fingerprint scanner on the back of the phone instead, but the phone in these photos doesn’t appear to have one on the back. Another given option was just skipping the fingerprint scanner altogether.
iPhone 8 design up in the air?
So do these photos show what the iPhone 8 will really look like? It seems like it could be too early for that, given all the reports we’ve heard about delays in manufacturing, and now there’s another wrench thrown into the works.
Qualcomm has sued four of Apple’s key manufacturing partners: Pegatron, Foxconn, Wistron and Compal Electronics. The chip maker alleges that Apple told them to stop paying it royalties, marking just the latest development in the seething feud between Apple and Qualcomm. Apple filed a lawsuit against the chip maker earlier this year, alleging that it was overcharging for chips and was refusing to pay rebates amount to about $1 billion.
Of course this case won’t keep the iPhone 8 off the shelves, but it could make what was already a difficult iPhone design cycle marked by manufacturing delays a bit more difficult.
Apple stock slumped by more than 3% on Wednesday, falling as low as $149.90 to shed a sizable chunk of its post-earnings gains.
