What will the iPhone 7 look like? Even Apple doesn’t know. According to a new rumor out of China, Apple is currently experimenting with at least five distinct iPhone 7 models, each with a totally different combination of hardware, including a possible AMOLED screen, a USB Type-C connector instead of Lightning, and a fingerprint reader built into the display.
The rumor comes from GforGames, an often-reliable source for Far East rumors about upcoming Apple products: They got most of their rumors about the iPhone 6s and iPad Pro right.
Still, take it with a grain of salt (as you should all Apple rumors) when they write that there are five different iPhone 7 prototypes in play right now:
By the sound of it Apple is trying to figure out which technologies would go best in the upcoming model, all the while keeping an eye on the performance of its suppliers
Reportedly, some of the technologies that can be found in these prototypes include a USB Type-C connector compatible with headsets, wireless charging technology, multi-Force Touch, dual camera configurations, and fingerprint recognition technology embedded within the display. The source claims that Apple is also fiddling with AMOLED display technology, but we should point out that, based on recent reports, the first iPhone to use an AMOLED screen will not be released before 2018.
I’d bet this is true. We’ve heard many times before that Apple often experiments with all sorts of prototypes before deciding on a final design. Still, this rumor gives us a tantalizing look at what might be coming down the pipe … if not for the iPhone 7, than the iPhone 7s or even iPhone 8.
Source: GforGames
John Brownlee is a writer for Fast Company, and a contributing writer here at CoM. He has also written for Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, VentureBeat, and Gizmodo. He lives in Boston with his wife and two parakeets. You can follow him here on Twitter.
11 responses to “Apple is testing ‘at least’ five radically different iPhone 7 prototypes”
Frankly I’m hugely skeptical that at this stage the design isn’t more or less locked down -with costs and contracts all sorted out. Perhaps they have done this with each prototype, and they have a ‘backup’ (as they always do), but ‘radically different’ – i doubt it.
I agree, we’re around 9 months away from the release of the iPhone 7, I find it hard to believe the design isn’t finalised.
Yeah, Apple designed all the iPhones up to the iPhone 12 back before SJ died, they are just slowly rolling them all out, one or two new models per year.
Yeah… sure.
Except for ‘SJ’ was against: larger displays for iPhone, stylus, multiple sizes for iPad, the idea of the apple watch…
you are on point with all those, and there is evidence of his hatred for everything you mentioned, but how was he against the idea of the apple watch? he invented portable music, a phone as a hub of tech, communication, and entertainment. how would he have not wanted all that was mentioned above plus health + wellness in a device normally not associated with that. phone weren’t that way before he came along, same with music players
I included the apple watch in my comment because it seems that i read in an article that at one point, Steve Jobs was heralding the iphone as a replacement for many things, including the common wrist watch. The other ones i was solid about, the watch was more of a reach based on heavy inference. His vision was very different for their product trajectory, but it is what it has become which has kept apple on top, no doubt.
you are so wrong its not even funny
So… they’re not teaching sarcasm in school anymore?
“if not for the iPhone 7, *then* the iPhone 7s”
Obfuscation purposes. Find out where the leaks are coming from and cut them from the supply chain. Samsung also now has to copy many stolen designs and only one will be the one they want to copy, because it’s the one that Apple is actually going to sell. Brilliant supply chain management Mr. Williams.