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2017 iPhone Will Include Edge-to-Edge Display With 'Virtual Button' Built Into Screen

Tuesday September 13, 2016 6:03 am PDT by Mitchel Broussard
In the midst of the publication of multiple iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus reviews, one tidbit within The New York Times' mostly positive review of the 2016 iPhone briefly looked forward to the much-anticipated "mega cycle," ten-year anniversary model of next year's iPhone. According to the publication, who spoke with two anonymous Apple employees, "next year’s iPhone will have a full-screen face with the virtual button built directly into the screen."

While not new information, the comment does continue a rumor of a drastically redesigned iPhone in 2017 that will introduce an edge-to-edge OLED display and eliminate the top and bottom bezels, where the front-facing FaceTime camera and Touch ID Home Button are currently housed. The redesigned Home Button of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus (which isn't an actual button, but packs in Apple's Taptic Engine to mimic a button press) will be completely gone in 2017, and fused with the OLED display, along with Touch ID functionality.

spacegrayiphone
But taking the leap to the 7 may be a wise bet, even for late technology adopters. Apple is likely to continue making iPhones without headphone jacks, and next year’s iPhone will have a full-screen face with the virtual button built directly into the screen, according to two people at the company who spoke on condition of anonymity because the product details are private. Apple declined to comment on next year’s iPhones.
With an all-glass, edge-to-edge display, Apple design chief Jony Ive's vision of an iPhone that looks like a single sheet of glass could finally come true in 2017. Regarding the display, it's said to be flexible OLED rather than an LCD, allowing Apple to introduce a thinner device that consumes less power and offers a better display with higher contrast ratio and more true to life colors.

It may also feature edges that are curved on both sides, similar to the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. That curved model could potentially be placed as a 5.8-inch premium addition to the line, with the other 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch, lower-priced iPhone 8 tiers including flat LCD displays.

Coming up sooner, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will be launching this Friday, September 16, to the first round of pre-order customers. While an iterative design, Apple has made a few notable changes to the iPhone line this year, including the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack, a flush Home Button, improved water resistance, and major overhauls to the camera, especially with the dual-lens system on the iPhone 7 Plus.

(Thanks, Anthony!)

[ 216 comments ]

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Dydegu
41 months ago
I can't even imagine the amount of rumors this phone will get between now and next September.
Rating: 32 Votes
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jsmith189
41 months ago
This is about to be a LONG year.

Someone needs to keep a tally of how many of the same article we get between now and next September.
Rating: 24 Votes
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imwoblin
41 months ago
No bezels, edge to edge glass / screen and no physical home button.
My dream iPhone..
Rating: 15 Votes
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decimortis
41 months ago
So where does the front-facing camera and speaker for phone calls go exactly?
Rating: 12 Votes
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Return Zero
41 months ago
I'm willing to bet that after the iPhone 8 hits pockets everywhere, there will be many people who say that the iPhone 7 design was better, just as people sung praises to the 5S design after the 6 was came out.
Rating: 12 Votes
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samac92
41 months ago
No doubt it was always Apple's intention to have this design after the iPhone 6 design, but they just couldn't do it in two years and had to stretch the iPhone 6 design out to last three years. Nothing about being lazy or not innovating.
Rating: 11 Votes
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OllyW
41 months ago

Digital speakers.

What are digital speakers? Do you need digital ears to listen to them?
Rating: 7 Votes
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Menel
41 months ago

Can we have some time to actually use the yet to be released model before the speculation about the next model begins?

You might be on the wrong site, this is macRUMORS.
Rating: 6 Votes
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OllyW
41 months ago

I'm betting ceramic as the main material and iPhone X as the name

The ceramic Apple Watch costs four times as much as the aluminium model so it's probably a bit too expensive to use on the larger iPhone case.
Rating: 6 Votes
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mdellepi
41 months ago
I'm betting ceramic as the main material and iPhone X as the name
Rating: 6 Votes

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