Excitement is building about the arrival of Apple’s next generation smartphone, te iPhone 7.
Rumors are flooding the internet about what the new smartphone will look like, and what features it will have under the hood. It’s still months away from the supposed launch date in September, but you wouldn’t know it from the amount of speculation that is appearing online, writes Edwin Kee for Ubergizmo.
Latest leak shows rose gold iPhone 7 and box
While some people are focusing on the technical specifications, others are making predictions about the exterior design of the handset. Word on the street is that Apple will retain a largely similar design to the existing iPhone 6s, and that looks to have been corroborated with this latest leak.
Someone has apparently got hold of a rose gold iPhone 7 and its packaging, before posting the images online. The images are very blurry, and could well be fake, but they appear to show a slightly redesigned handset with different antenna bands.
Aside from that another point of interest is the single camera lens. Other rumors have alleged that Apple will introduce a dual-camera system for its new smartphone, which will dramatically improve performance in low light.
Dual-camera system to be exclusive to iPhone 7 Plus?
However the images show only one camera module. This may be because the phone is a standard iPhone 7 rather than an iPhone 7 Plus. It is thought that Apple could introduce the dual-camera system exclusively to the larger smartphone in an effort to drive sales. As it stands the vast majority of consumers buy the standard iPhone 6s rather than the larger iPhone 6s Plus.
Another rumor pertains to the arrival of a new halo model, which would be known as the iPhone 7 Pro. This would mark a departure for Apple in its smartphone series, and bring the range into line with the MacBook and the iPad. The thinking is that cutting-edge technology like the dual-camera system could be introduced for power users who are willing to pay more for a premium product.
This could also be a way for Apple to show that it is pushing the boundaries of smartphone technology without placing too much pressure on supply chains.
Proposed changes generate controversy
Other rumors relate to the inclusion of 3GB RAM to handle the extra processing work from the dual-camera system. It is also thought that Apple could use a smaller version of the screen found on the iPad Pro.
Another persistent rumor is that Apple will get rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack in a bid to make the iPhone 7 even thinner than its predecessors. This would mean that the company would have to introduce headphones that connect via the Lightning port, or use wireless ear buds.
If the company goes down the Lightning port route that would rule out charging your phone while listening to music. On the other hand wireless ear buds present a technological challenge that not many companies have mastered.
Audiophiles have been up in arms about the rumored change due to the poor sound quality offered by wireless buds compared to their wired counterparts. However if Apple has come up with a decent set of wireless buds it could be an exciting development for many Apple fans.
At the end of the day this remains pure speculation given the lack of information from Apple. The best thing to do at this stage is to sit tight and wait for an official announcement.