There is no doubt that the release of the iPhone is a highlight of any consumer electronics year, but when there is a next generation device on the horizon this phenomenon multiplies in importance. This will be the case in 2016, with the iPhone 7 expected to land in stores around the world. The new numerical digit in the branding of the iPhone 7 indicates that this smartphone will be a significant departure from last year’s iPhone 6S release.
As usual, official word from the world’s largest consumer electronics company has been rather thin on the ground. Apple prefers to play its cards close to its chest, and thus there has been nothing in the way of official information from the California-based company.
But the first indication of possible specs and functionality that could be included in the next generation iPhone 7 came from Apple’s ‘Let Us Loop You In’ event last month. This conference, which saw the unveiling of the long-awaited four-inch iPhone SE, provided us with clues to the future direction of Apple the company, and further hints on what could be included in the iPhone 7.
iPhone 7 & iPhone 7 Pro – Memory upgrade
Aside from the smaller smartphone competitor, the Cupertino-headquartered company also saw fit to let the brand new iPad Pro see the light of day as well. This 9.7-inch tablet is intended to build upon Apple’s successes in this niche, with the iPad already having long since established itself as the most significant tablet computer in the world.
One of the most interesting aspects of the iPad Pro was that Apple finally upgraded the storage in the device to the 256GB level that many fans had demanded for sometime. This will make it considerably easier for users of Apple’s tablet to store data and media on the device going forward. But the decision to significantly upgrade the storage also provides insight regarding the Apple ethos for the iPhone 7.
This memory specification has already been linked with the iPhone 7, with obvious motivations from Apple’s perspective. Not only could Apple increase the screen resolution of the handset, therefore placing more pressure on the amount of storage on the device, but the corporation has already indicated that it will place more emphasis on the music-playing qualities of its devices in 2016. Apple is looking to make more of its Beats acquisition, and there has been a general emphasis on music playback quality in recent Apple device releases. Naturally, more music requires more storage.
Chinese whispers
Thus, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if Apple decided to upgrade the storage in the iPhone 7, and considering that the last device had a premium version with 128GB storage, doubling this to 256GB would seem to be logical. So the latest news out of China that Apple is considering precisely this specification for the next generation iPhone 7 will come as no surprise to analysts and Apple observers alike.
The leak in question comes from a Chinese website which suggests that Apple has already decided to produce a 256GB version of the iPhone 7, and that the iPad Pro was an indication of this policy. If true, it will be intriguing to see how Samsung responds to this decision with the Galaxy Note 6, as the Korean corporation has been hitherto reluctant to match the amount of storage included in the iPhone range in some of its devices.
Whether this to 256GB variant of the iPhone 7 would be included in all models of the device, or just reserved for the proposed iPhone Pro, remains to be seen. Undoubtedly, many consumers will be calling for Apple to include this storage quotient in each of the iPhone 7 models released, but this is not certain at the time of writing.
Huawei dual-camera push
Aside from this titbit of Chinese information, fans of the iPhone range had further reason to look to the world’s most populous nation this week. Huawei, the Chinese phone company, has debuted a feature which has been widely associated with the iPhone range. Huawei just unveiled its P9; a new smartphone that features dual-camera technology. This innovation has been linked with the iPhone 7, and the iPhone Pro in particular, with esteemed analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities indicating that Apple will indeed release a specialist model of the iPhone 7 featuring a dual-snapper.
The move by Huawei is indicative of the fight that Apple is facing from an increasingly diversified smartphone marketplace, with newer Android competitors becoming increasingly emboldened. Perhaps this has had a bigger impact on the market share of Samsung thus far, but it is a feature of the contemporary market that Apple will be monitoring very closely.
Bigger battery
However, good news for potential Apple consumers is that the California-based corporation seems to be considering upgrading the battery in the iPhone 7 when it is released. Reports from Korea this week suggest that Apple will utilize a brand new chipset for the iPhone 7, which will enable the phone to be both slimmer and also to carry a larger battery.
ETNews quoted a source from close to the Apple supply chain which suggests that Apple will utilize a “fan-out” packaging method for the A10 chipset in the iPhone 7. This innovation will effectively increase the number of input/output terminals within the device, and is extremely cost-effective from a production cost perspective.
This means that the iPhone 7 could benefit from a more compact chipset, effectively shrinking the area required for the motherboard and antenna of the device, and ultimately opening up more space for a larger battery cell. This points to a sleeker and more practical iPhone 7 when it hits the stores in what is anticipated to be September.
So the latest news on the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Pro is that they will deliver improvements on the iPhone 7 that have been begged for by Apple fans, and this can only be a good thing for this massive smartphone competitor.
