The Apple iPhone 7 rumors are all over the map at this point, with speculation running rampant almost a year before the potential iPhone 7 release date. The latest concept being suggested is that the iPhone 7 screen specs could call for Apple removing a certain part of the smartphone… and, yes, that is a good thing. There’s also plenty of reason to believe the iPhone 7 CPU may be produced by Samsung.
In a related report by The Inquisitr , the latest iPhone 7 rumors suggest that Apple may be readying a new iPhone 7 screen that can display 3D images without the need for glasses. The upcoming iPhone 6 Plus deals for Black Friday 2014 have shoppers excited that they may be able to snag the latest phablet, but so far most stores have chosen to focus on offering special deals for the regular 16 GB iPhone 6 and the older iPhone 5S.
The iPhone 7 CPU rumors have been months in the making and started before the iPhone 6 launch. Prior to the launch of the iPhone 6, Samsung manufactured all of Apple’s ARM processors for the previous models, but then there was a switch when the Apple A8 CPU in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus was also manufactured by rival chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC). This change was largely presumed to be the result of Samsung becoming the biggest competitor to new iPhone designs because of Samsung’s popular Galaxy S series.
Although not much is known about the iPhone 7 CPU, it’s presumed to be called the Apple A9 CPU at this time. According to the Motley Fool , the biggest shift would be that the iPhone 7’s A9 CPU would be manufactured on the 16 nanometer process, which should allow the processor to be significantly smaller. The biggest change, besides increased performance, would be an increase in battery life, and TSMC claimed 40 percent more performance and 60 percent power saving for its 16 FinFET manufacturing process.
At the same time, it’s possible Samsung will produce the iPhone 7 CPU based upon its own 14-nanometer FinFET manufacturing process. But some rumors suggest that both companies will be involved with the iPhone 7, with Samsung and Taiwan Semiconductor building the chips on their respective 14- and 16-nanometer technologies.
Regarding the iPhone 7 screen rumors, the idea that the iPhone 7 display may lack a bezel entirely is based upon a concept produced by Business Insider , not by any Apple engineers. Although there is no leaked information providing a basis for this idea, it has been suggested that by “making the top and bottom bezel of the iPhone smaller and introducing an edge-to-edge display, Apple could theoretically preserve the 4.7-inch screen size of the iPhone 6 but still reduce the overall size of the phone.” Realistically, Apple could attempt to do this although it could be argued removing the bezel entirely takes away finger placements for holding and gripping the edges of the smartphone.
The other possibility is that Apple extends the iPhone 7 screen to cover the entire front face of the smartphone, wrapping around even the forward-facing camera and the home button. While the concept art for this “full screen display” is neat, actually implementing this concept would introduce new technical challenges. The iPhone 7 screen would be outputting an oddball widescreen resolution that’s outside of the normal 1080p specifications. In addition, changing up the screen formats so dramatically would require Apple App developers to support this new interface, which may introduce some oddball bugs until developers push out app updates supporting the new format. Of course, all these technical hurdles can be overcome but it’s hard to picture Apple going so far outside the box when the benefits are few.
The biggest piece of speculation involved in the iPhone 6 rumors is whether or not the iPhone 7 will actually be called the iPhone 7 in 2015. Considering the history of Apple’s naming convention, it’s very possible the iPhone 7 could instead be called the iPhone 6S, with the presumption there would also be an iPhone 7 Plus or an iPhone 6S Plus. If Apple sticks to its launch date history, then it should be expected that the iPhone 7 release date will occur in September of 2015.
What do you think about the Apple iPhone 7 rumors so far? Is there any one feature on your wish list?