WSJ Confirms iPhone Redesign Slated For 2017 And Not 2016

Apple’s iPhone 7 is expected to be announced sometime in September with a release a matter of days later, but where the months leading up to a big iPhone release are normally littered with a lot of hype, this year hasn’t yet quite managed to hit the heady heights of years gone by.

The theory for this is that Apple is believed to be on the verge of announcing a new iPhone that looks very similar to the past two revisions, with the big update not set to be announced until 2017. People like new iPhones to look different to the one they are already using, suggesting 2017 will be the big year for Apple’s smartphone.

iPhone-7-7-Plus-main-dual-camea

While the iPhone 7 is already rumored to be very similar to the iPhone 6s, the Wall Street Journal is confirming existing rumors that the next iPhone will see the device shed the headphone jack that all iPhones to this point have included. This will, we’re told, allow for the handset to be made thinner and more waterproof than previous designs with audio being handled via the Lightning port and Bluetooth rather than the traditional 3.5mm headphone port. Beyond this, though, the WSJ has also reported on what everyone really has their eyes on – the big redesign destined for 2017’s iPhone 8.

If the WSJ is correct – and it may well be, given the fact similar rumors are already out there to the same effect – the 2017 iPhone 8 will feature a design that includes an OLED display and a Touch ID sensor that is built into that display rather than the physical Home button in which it currently resides. Both additions would be most welcome, without doubt.

For years, Apple Chief Design Officer Jony Ive has expressed a desire for the iPhone to appear like a single sheet of glass, according to people familiar with the matter. The current design ideas for the 2017 iPhones are expected to push the handsets in that direction by eliminating much of the bezel around the display, with the OLED screen.

iPhone-7-bezel-less-concept

Bezel-less iPhone 7 concept by ConceptsiPhone

With a whole iPhone announcement and release to come before that point, however, attentions must surely be drawn to what Apple has up its sleeve for this September. It may not be the big release many had been hoping for, but a new, thinner iPhone is undoubtedly on the cards. How well will it be received? Only time will tell.

(Source: WSJ)

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