The rumours about Apple’s latest iPhone keep flooding in as we move towards the official announcement. Let’s see what we know so far.
According to the famous leaker Sonny Dickson, the latest iteration of Apple’s iPhone will continue to come in four variants including iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Mini, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max. This has been confirmed through other sources as well as the lineup aligns with the previous year models of iPhone 12.
The iPhone 13 Will Rock a Familiar Design
If we go by the renders that have been going around on the internet, the iPhone 13 is going to maintain the design language with a few exceptions. The camera bump has been resized, perhaps to accommodate the latest camera module which may include LIDAR technology. Then there’s increased thickness of the regular iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro models. The rumoured sizes include the following:
iPhone 13 Mini – 5.4″
iPhone 13 – 6.1″
iPhone 13 Pro – 6.1″
iPhone 13 Pro Max – 6.7″
Other crucial design components that have generated a lot of hype include a shallower notch which can be seen in leaked mockups. The screens of the latest iPhones could even be completely notch-less but we will have to wait and see. The lightning port is finally making its way out after years of speculation.
When is the iPhone 13 Coming Out?
So far, there hasn’t been any official announcement related to the iPhone 13 release date. In April, a report revealed that the production of the iPhones’ new processors are now ahead of schedule putting the iPhone 13 release date in Australia and rest of the world on the tech giant’s pre-pandemic timeline. 2020 became the first year when Apple wasn’t able to introduce its new lineup of iPhone due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, the latest reports suggest that Apple’s supply chain has been streamlined and we can expect the newest iPhones to be revealed by the mid of September 2021. Generally, Apple holds its announcements on Tuesdays or Wednesdays with a gap of 7 to 10 days before the eventual release. We can expect the event to be somewhere around September 8 with the release date being close to September 17.
Bigger Batteries for Every iPhone Variant
One of the major breakthroughs that we experienced with the introduction of theiPhone 12 lineup was exceptional battery life. Thankfully, that’s going to be improved upon as Weibo, a Chinese social media platform revealed that the iPhone 13 product line will have bigger batteries.
- iPhone 13 Mini – 2,406 mAh
- iPhone 13 – 3,095 mAh
- iPhone 13 Pro – 3,095 mAh
- iPhone 13 Pro Max – 4,325 mAh
While Apple doesn’t reveal any official specifications about their phones’ batteries, these numbers suggest that each iPhone 13 will witness an upgrade as compared to its predecessor. The real question, however, is whether the battery upgrades will result in more screen time? This will depend on how seamless the optimization is with the other hardware and software.
Is iPhone 13 Going to be Portless?
We all know Apple always aims for minimalist designs which have riled up the fans in the past as well. We all remember how the removal of the 3.5mm jack went. The company’s goal has been to produce a device that doesn’t feature any external buttons or ports so we have the cleanest and the most minimalist design. Although there are rumours about iPhone 13 doing away with the Lightning port, there is still no official word.
According to an article published in Bloomberg, Apple thought about getting rid of the lightning port on some of its iPhone variants and replacing it with wireless charging but Ming-Chi Kuo, the Apple analyst is of the view that Apple will continue to rely on a Lightning connector for its latest fall lineup. If there’s indeed a port-less iPhone, it will use Qi-based charging along with MagSafe accessories. However, that market isn’t sufficiently mature yet.
Can We Expect In-Screen Touch ID?
There are multiple reports that suggest that Apple has been testing an in-screen Touch ID but so far it isn’t ready. Joanna Stern of The Wall Street Journal also believes that Apple currently has an in-display fingerprint sensor in the works that relies on optical technology. On the other hand, other sources have revealed that Apple is more likely to use Qualcomm’s ultrasonic technology.
It needs to be kept in mind that ultrasonic technology is considerably more secure as compared to optical technology and it remains functional in a variety of conditions. However, Apple can still go with a more mature combination of optical and capacitive technologies. If Apple successfully deploys the in-screen Touch ID, many users will take a sigh of relief as they would have the option to use fingerprint unlock when wearing masks.
Faster Refresh Rate Screen
One of the rumours about iPhone 12 lineup was that the phones will come with 120Hz ProMotion displays. However, later on we found out that Apple chose to skip that feature due to battery life reservations. In order to successfully implement a faster refresh rate on the iPhone without compromising the battery life, Apple has to use LTPO display technology. This is probably going to happen in 2021.
According to many rumours, there are at least two models from the Apple iPhone 13 lineup that will use low-power LTPO backplane technology which will facilitate faster 120Hz refresh rates. LTPO brings a substantially power efficient backplane, which switches the standalone pixels on and off on the display. This enables better battery life. The two iPhones that will feature LTPO technology are expected to be the Pro models.
Final Word
Every year, the new iPhone announcement is one of the most hyped events in the technology space as Apple introduces new features with a focus on consumer facilitation. Apart from the rumours we have discussed above, the Apple iPhone 13 lineup is expected to have much more, including enhanced zoom capability, improved night mode, always-on display, and probably a new name.
How many of our rumours turn into reality, that’s yet to be seen.