Apple’s 4.8-Inch iPhone 6 Will Have Removable Control Buttons and is Travel-Friendly on Release Date
Apple's new batch of inventions will provide future iPhone 6 users with physical control keys experience that are completely removable plus a comprehensive guide for frequent travellers.
The new patents were filed in 2008 and 2009 respectively, giving ample time for Apple engineers to incorporate the technologies on upcoming iPhone builds, with the phablet-size iPhone 6 as likely the initial recipient.
Apple is set to introduce a radical control system that is characterised by "removable, deformable buttons ... and are mounted to a touch-sensitive surface in order to give users a physical form of feedback," Apple Insider said on its report.
In application, users can attach the control structure to an iOS device, an iPhone or an iPad, thereby creating a set of touchscreen buttons that provide "tactile or click sensation."
When fitted to device's touchscreen, the mechanism relies on a suction-effect "to create a tactile button overlaid atop the display ... which can be made to deform when pressure is applied," the same report said.
Made of rubber or transparent material, users can obtain more than one structures and use them simultaneously, which is an embodiment that is more appropriate with the iPad's intensive gaming features.
The second patent is an enhancement of Apple's iTravel services, according to Patently Apple, leading to the future release of an application that facilitates smooth travelling - from airline booking through a passenger's final destination.
The app will integrate plane, train and bus facilities plus related services and make them easily accessible from a user's iPhone, ensuring that the whole process is as smooth as possible.
Seen as a key addition to the recently unveiled iOS 7, the application will point users to hotel, restaurants and even in-flight services, presenting them with a wide-array of options prior to the actual travel.
Unlike the previously revealed Apple patents, these features have a greater chance of making it to iPhone 6, which analysts said will take a much earlier release date, likely to happen on Q1 2014.