Last year’s iPhone models failed to excite Apple fans due to lack of innovative design. The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus continue the same design that Apple launched with iPhone 6 for consecutive three years. However, the devices came out with greater hardware specifications. The current iPhone models rock A10 Fusion chipset; the larger sibling carries dual camera setup and 3GB of RAM. For the design part, things are also expected to change this year. Why? Because 2017 marks the 10th anniversary of the first-generation iPhone that launched in 2007.
We are just a few days away when Apple is going to officially unveil the iPhone 8 (iPhone X or iPhone Edition?) on September 12th. The rumor mill has been in full swing leaking iPhone 8 related info over the past few months. We have compiled a detailed post on what we know about the 10th anniversary iPhone 8. Read the complete article from start to finish and decide for yourself if it’s going to be a worthy upgrade for you or not.
Different monikers are floating all over the internet for this newly-designed 10th anniversary iPhone. These names include iPhone 8, iPhone X, and the iPhone Edition. Only Apple knows for now what the real name is going to be. We will know for sure on 12th September media event where Apple is going to unveil the device officially. For this post, I am going to refer to it as iPhone 8, like the majority has been for more than a year now.
Design
With iPhone 8, Apple is expected to say good bye to the aluminum-and-glass body that we have been using for last three years. Leaked cases and dummy units suggest that the glass back, as first seen on the iPhone 4, is making a return in iPhone 8. It’s worth noting that the iPhone 4 was the first iPhone to get glass treatment and it was well-received by the world due to its gorgeous look. The iPhone 8 will have a metallic frame sandwiched between the glass front and back.
While glass is a less durable solution compared to aluminum, but it is a requirement for wireless charging. It means the upcoming 10th-anniversary edition will feature wireless charging as well. Other than that the device is also rumored to get IP68 rated dust and water tolerance. This increase in resistance against water and dust is better than the IP67 standard of the iPhone 7.
On the front end, the display of the device will cover the whole front with a visible cut-out at the top – referred to as “the notch.” The notch is rumored to house earpiece, loudspeakers, selfies camera and other sensors including the facial scanner. There would not be a dedicated physical Home button on the front of the iPhone 8. A Touch sensitive solution will replace it.
Due to the elimination of the mechanical Home button, there would not be any Touch ID on iPhone 8. Rather the company will introduce a facial authentication solution instead. This facial authentication system will be a 3D depth sensing, infrared based, system that would not be easy to fool as done to Galaxy S8/Note 8 facial scanners. The system will reportedly work even in the pitch dark environment and even when the mobile is resting at the desk.
When it comes to color options, we have seen alleged iPhone dummies in three color variants; black, silver, and a new “copper-gold.” The front side is expected to come in white and black. The white option makes the notch very prominent while “the notch” blends in pretty well with the black front. The frame of the device will rock a glossy stainless steel finish.
Display
The iPhone 8 is widely expected to come with 5.8-inch OLED display. It is going to be slightly larger than the current iPhone 7s Plus and will be an edge-to-edge display. Due to an edge-to-edge design, the overall size of the device is expected to be slightly larger than the current 4.7-inch iPhone 7. Other rumored display features include a 2436 x 1125 pixel resolution with 462 pixel-per-inch density. The iPhone 8 is going to be the first iPhone to feature an OLED display.
iPhone 8 display is expected to get two types of technological improvements: True Tone display and ProMotion. A True Tone display gets additional ambient light sensors that help in an auto adjustment of the screen colors based on the lighting in the environment. The ProMotion feature that Apple introduced with 10-inch iPad Pro dynamically shifts the display refresh rate up to 120GHz, resulting in a fluid user interface.
iPhone 8 will continue to have 3D Touch display technology because the tech is now tightly integrated with the iOS and many apps now support it. However, it is worth noting that the integration of 3D Touch in an OLED display cost 150% more than the LCDs. This increase in cost will ultimately affect the overall price of the device (more on iPhone8’s price below).
Chipset
Apple will highly likely launch the iPhone 8 with an all-new Apple A11 chipset. A 10nm fabrication process is used to manufacture the A11 chipset. This new chipset should bring in more performance and efficiency over the previous 14-nm A10 Fusion chip. Since the iPhone 8 is going to be the flagship model, it should feature at least 3GB of RAM just like the current iPhone 7s Plus. More RAM is also a necessity for the proper working of the dual camera setup.
Camera
Just like the iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8 will continue to feature a dual camera system, but this time the lenses are going to be vertically aligned on the rear of the device. Of course, the cameras are expected to deliver better quality and performance over their predecessor with a combination of standard and telephoto lenses. However, the both lenses on iPhone 8 are expected to have Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) just like the Galaxy Note 8. OIS in both lenses means that photos or videos shot in imperfect conditions will not look crappier than the ones shot with 1x zoom.
With the help of improved A11 chip performance, the iPhone 8 camera will be capable of shooting 4K videos at 60 frames per second. Both the cameras on the front and rear of the device will make use of the 3D-depth sensing discussed above. These camera improvements will also help with Apple’s Augmented Reality framework called ARKit in iOS 11. The iPhone 8 camera will get improved scene detection, internally called “SmartCamera.”
Storage
Regarding internal storage, the base model is said to start with 64GB storage. Other storage options include 256GB and 512GB internal capacity.
Battery
Despite being close to smaller iPhone 7 in size, the iPhone 8 is expected to get a huge L-shaped 2700mAh battery unit. Sor comparison, the iPhone 7 Plus which is reasonably larger than the iPhone 8, has a 2900mAh battery unit. With this Apple will bring its flagship smartphone closer to the battery capacity of its Android rivals. However, Apple is known for delivering longer battery time despite having smaller battery capacity due to hardware and software configuration.
Software
Just like any new iPhone, the iPhone 8 will run the latest and greatest iOS version at launch. Yes, the iOS 11 will be the default operating system of iPhone 8 when it releases to the masses. However, some iPhone 8 specific software changes are rumored due to lack of a physical home button.
There are two different theories on how Apple is going to handle the absence of Home button:
- A touch sensitive home button beneath the display. Navigation buttons within the apps will be moved towards the bottom to either side of the button for easier access making the optimal use of the area. This theory support to keep the much of the familiarity that iPhone users have since the launch of original iPhone.
- Apple removes the Home button altogether and introduces swipe gesture to handle multitasking and things like that. Some reports suggest that lack-of-Home-button experience will be similar to the iPad Dock in iOS 11. Some videos found inside the mistakenly released HomePod firmware shows this behavior. The code also points at the action of invoking Siri being reassigned to the Power button on the side. The majority supports this theory.
This is also interesting pic.twitter.com/JdYDhZDkev
— Guilherme Rambo (@_inside) August 21, 2017
Price
The iPhone 8 is going to be a premium device with the price tag going as high as $1400. Such price tag will make the iPhone 8 more than the double the starting price of typical new iPhones. However, the most recent report claims the iPhone 8 price to start at $900 for the 64GB storage variant with a 256GB variant costing $1000. Still, this is way above than what the traditional starting price of an iPhone used to be. That is $649 for the entry level and $769 for the base Plus-sized model.
That’s it folks, one big fat compilation of all the rumors and reports related to iPhone 8 at one place. Join us in the comments section below; we still have a few days to theorize the missing pieces of the iPhone 8 further. Will Apple go with the virtual home button or should remove it altogether and introduce gesture based controls. Also, share your thoughts on the Notch display.
The post iPhone 8 Rumors Roundup – What to Expect appeared first on iPhoneHeat.
