Reuters relays rumors from a South Korean newspaper which revives claims of a larger screen on the next iPhone.
Apple has decided on the bigger 4.6-inch display for its next iPhone and started placing orders to its suppliers, the Maeil Business Newspaper said, quoting an unnamed industry source.
A 4.6-inch screen, however, would be significantly larger than that has been previously rumored. There have been persistent rumors that the next generation iPhone would carry a larger 4" screen. And we are convinced that Apple had exactly such designs in late prototype stages in China. The proliferation of iPhone cases with measurements of at least a 4" screen seemed to suggest that a number of suppliers were also convinced of that fact.
A 4.6" screen, however, is even harder to believe, and would place the new iPhone amongst the largest screen sizes available on a smartphone. Here's a comparison shot between the 4.65" screen of the Galaxy Nexus and the iPhone 4S which has a 3.5" screen.
TheVerge comparison between Galaxy Nexus (4.65") and iPhone 4S (3.5")
Apple has been consistent by offering the same screen size (3.5") across five generations of iPhones, so any change would be notable. The reason this particular claim seems most dubious, however, is the fact that it comes from an otherwise unknown Korean media source with no track record.
Still, it's hard to dismiss the talk of a larger 4" iPhone screen completely. Back in November, iLounge first reported that the 3rd Generation iPad would be "approximately 0.7 mm" thicker than the iPad 2. As it turns out, they were on the mark with the actual new iPad being 0.6 mm thicker (per official specs) than the previous design. The same source that provided that information had this to say about the next generation iPhone:
Our source says that the next-generation iPhone will not look like the teardrop-shaped version that was widely rumored for release in 2011. We’ve been told that the device will have a 4-inch display and will be 8mm longer than before, with a metal casing (probably aluminum). It is on track to be introduced in summer of 2012, and is still in the engineering phase, not early production. We suspect that poor battery life doomed the prior prototype version, and that this one is being built with LTE-ready battery drain in mind.
Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone.
In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker.
According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found.
Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future.
"I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
You'd expect things to be starting to wind down for the holidays by now, but that doesn't seem to be the case yet in the world of Apple news, with Apple just about ready to release iOS 26.2 and other operating system updates to the public.
There was also a flurry of news this week about Apple executive departures, some expected and some not so expected, while we also learned that Apple and...
Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre.
Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
Just a idea... the current iphone glass is just about 4.7in. So why not keep the same phone size and go edge to edge with the screen. Or go very close to the top and bottom edges.
Apple could then :p at other HUGE phones while the iPhone is a nice size with the largest screen.
Big screens are a matter of preference, but Apple isn't particularly inclined to catering for everyone's preferences.
The 3.5" screen is really a matter of principle to them - it's the size they've decided a smartphone should be, and the size they've designed their UI to fit into (just like the iPad being the size they've decided a tablet should be) and we'll probably never see a device they put out that changes that anytime soon without a really good reason.
TheVerge comparison between Galaxy Nexus (4.65") and iPhone 4S (3.5")
