Apple iPhone 7: 10 things to expect from Apple’s next iPhone

Prevailing speculations indicate that Apple’s next generation of iPhones will bring in pioneering technologies into the smartphone domain. The tech giant is expected to launch the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus at the company's fall event in September. However, Apple is yet to confirm the iPhone 7 release date.

Here’s a roundup of all the rumoured specs and features of the next iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus:

1 | Thinner than ever

The next generation of the iPhone is speculated to be only 6.1 mm thick like the sixth-generation iPod touch, making the new iPhone 7 the thinnest iPhone ever -- 1 mm thinner than the current iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.

2 | Display innovations

The Cupertino-based tech giant is expected to bring in three significant display innovations to the next iteration of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

Many tech experts believe that with the iPhone 7, Apple may drop the physical home button and introduce its first smartphone with a top-to-bottom display screen.

Secondly, the tech giant may incorporate an anti-reflective coating on the display, which the company uses for its iPad Air 2 and the iPad Mini 4. According to a report by DisplayMate, the aforementioned devices tout a record breaking low reflectance rate which considerably enhances image quality.

Lastly, the iPhone 7 may also sport high-end sapphire displays, which Apple used for its Apple Watch, according to unofficial reports.

3 | New design with no camera bump

Apple’s next generation of iPhones is said to be arriving with two significant design changes. Firstly, the iPhone 7 is expected to do away with the rear camera hump which is present in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s series.

The revamped iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will also reportedly remove the antenna lines from the rear panel, according to unconfirmed reports.

4 | Wireless charging from 15 feet

A report by the NY Post states that Apple has teamed up with Energous Corporation (NASDAQ: WATT), a start-up company recognised for its proprietary wireless charging technology named WattUp.

The WattUp is a wire-free charging technology which comprises a tiny WattUp chip and an Energous transmitter. If installed within the iPhone 7, the small receiver chip will be able to wirelessly charge the smartphone as long as it is within the 15 feet radius of the transmitter.

5 | Dual-lens camera

Rumours have abounded that Apple was testing several prototypes of the iPhone 7, including a variant with dual-lens camera set-up.

Recently, during a Q3 2015 earnings call, Sony CFO Kenchiro Yoshida mentioned that dual-lens camera modules would be used by major smartphone manufacturers in 2016, which further fuelled speculations that the bigger iPhone 7 Plus may house a dual-lens camera system.

A dual-lens camera module will bring significant advantages to smartphone users, including the use of different focal lengths for greater zooms. Apple iPhones already feature camera sensors from Sony.

6 | Water resistance

In a series of graphically designed illustrations published on Behance.net, Ukrainian designer Herman Haidin indicated that the iPhone 7 could be completely waterproof. The leaked render displays the device crafted from “liquidmetal.” This special metal has high water resistance, corrosion resistance, water resistance and better elasticity, reports BGR.

7 | More internal storage

There are rumours that the larger screened iPhone 7 Plus will come with a gigantic 256GB storage variant which is double the top end iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, offering 128 GB of in-built storage. Moreover, it is believed that the iPhone 7 Plus may feature a generous 3GB of RAM.

8 | Self-healing feature

There are speculations that the upcoming Apple iPhone 7 would arrive with a self-healing functionality. This means the device would be capable of automatically fixing some of the common issues related to camera and water damage. However, there has been no official confirmation of these rumours.

9 | Ditch headphone jack

According to Japanese website Mac Otakara, Apple will remove the 3.5 mm headphone jack on the iPhone 7 to incorporate a Lightning connector. The all-in-one Lightning connector will have an in-built Digital to Analog Convertor (DA) and support Lightning-equipped and Bluetooth headphones for backward compatibility.

10 | Panic button

In May 2014, Apple filed a patent application to include a new security feature to its upcoming iPhone lineup. Last November, the application was approved by the US Patent and Trademark Office, first spotted by The Telegraph.

This means the next iPhone 7’s Touch ID fingerprint sensor can be used to enable a “panic mode.” Once the new mode is launched, the phone’s data becomes inaccessible.