As fans of mobile technology await the release of the iPhone 7, Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S7, concept artists have captured the way that these devices might appear to consumers. There may be something of a wait until fans of Apple and Samsung can get their hands on these devices, but they can at least satisfy themselves by checking out the latest speculation on the smartphones.
iPhone 7 concept
As curved screen technology continues its amazing rise in popularity, all of the next generation mobile devices are being linked with this design aspect. Although Apple has yet to release a curved screen device, the corporation has already applied for and had approved a patent for similar technology to that which Samsung has already included in its mobile range. So it is reasonable to assume that we will see an iPhone 7 featuring a curved display in the foreseeable future.
Thus, designer Hasan Kaymak has recently imagined what an iPhone 7 might look like if it is inspired by its Samsung rival. This iPhone 7 Edge concept is rendered in such a way that the edges of the device are curved in a similar fashion to the Galaxy S6 Edge. Kaymak imagines that the sides of the handset could be utilized in order to display notifications; not dissimilar to the way that speakers in the Galaxy S6 Edge and the Galaxy Note Edge are also utilized for additional functionality.
The artist in question has also shifted the speaker hole in the device, and notably made the iPhone 7 even slimmer than its predecessor. Kaymak believes that a depth of 6.9mm is feasible for this next generation Apple handset, and certainly the market-leading smartphone manufacturer has always attempted to produce thinner devices in the past.
Such a slim device does raise question marks about the Bendgate fiasco which dogged the otherwise monumentally successful release of the iPhone 6. But Apple could respond to this by producing the iPhone 7 from a sophisticated form of aluminum, as has been recently widely reported in the media.
Galaxy Note 5 Edge Concept
Whether an iPhone 7 Edge will come to fruition, and indeed how long the Apple smartphone range will take to embrace curved screen technology, remains to be seen. But we can be far more confident about the Galaxy Note Edge, as Samsung has become particularly associated with this technology in the last few years.
After its range of high-end television sets with curved displays became increasingly popular, Samsung took the plunge and introduced curved screens into its mobile range with the Galaxy Note edge. This process was solidified with the release of the Galaxy S6 Edge earlier this year, and now Samsung is expected to produce the first dual-curved display phablet when the Galaxy Note 5 range releases later this year.
And artist Ivo Maric has already produced a set of Galaxy Note 5 Edge concept images. Maric imagines this next generation Samsung tablet as being very much an angular device, and there are also other notable variations over previous iterations of the series.
Maric envisages that Samsung will significantly change the camera included in the Galaxy Note 5 Edge. Plus, the concept images produced by the designer feature a completely different camera assembly compared to the previous versions of the series. Apple is expected to seriously upgrade the iPhone camera when it releases the iPhone 7, so this would be a natural response from Samsung.
Based on these concept images, the Galaxy Note 5 will also be a luminous and shiny device, and follow the trend for sleeker and slimmer mobile devices. It is worth pointing out as well that the images produced by the artist are not significantly different from previous Galaxy Note devices, and certainly do not represent a radical departure in design terms.
Reports have already indicated that the Samsung will step up production of the curved screen variant of its mobile when the Galaxy Note 5 range is released.
Galaxy S7 Edge Concept
Although the release of the Galaxy S7 is still a year away, that hasn’t prevented designers from producing concept images for this significant flagship mobile. Samsung has steered the Galaxy S range in the right direction with the Galaxy S6, which establishes its premier smartphone range as a physically attractive and appealing device once more. This primarily metallic handset was likely a response to the lukewarm reception that the plasticky Galaxy S5 received previously.
Mesut G Designs has thus produced a video based on information about the Galaxy S7 which is already in the public domain. This concept video suggests that the Galaxy S7 Edge will feature curves on both sides of the smartphone, while there will be significant design alterations. In the continual battle which smartphone manufacturers wage in order to produce devices with larger screens, Mesut G Designs predicts that Samsung will significantly slim down the bezels at the bottom and top sides of the Galaxy S7 screen.
This would suggest that this next generation handset could possibly include a larger display than in previous iterations of the device. In order to accommodate this larger screen, the video in question suggests that the camera in the Galaxy S7 could be moved to the left-hand side of the device.
Another revolutionary aspect of this concept is that the Galaxy S7 Edge may eliminate the physical home button completely. Considering that the S7 Edge variant will have what is virtually a bezel-less design, the physical space for a Home button may be lacking. Mesut G. Designs thus suggests that this may then be eliminated from the Galaxy S7 Edge completely, in what would be a radical concept which significantly differs from any other smartphone available on the market.
Samsung has pioneered the curved screen smartphone, and if this concept video is correct, it will move the series forward considerably when the Galaxy S7 Edge is released.