While it can easily be argued that iPhone evolution is largely incremental, Apple does have a history of taking bigger strides in design in alternating years. One year we will see a rejuvenated design, and in the next we will see updates to the features on that design.
Although this year was slated to be a “rejuvenating” year, reports are claiming it’s not going to happen, with the next iPhone design being pretty much the same as the iPhone 6.
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The Wall Street Journal, which has been historically on the money for reports like this, headed up the report.
Apparently the biggest change will be the unpopular choice to have the lightning connector gain dual functionality as both a charging port and a headphone jack, removing the 3.5mm headphone jack entirely.
The 2017 model, on the other hand, is reported as featuring an edge-to-edge OLED display with an embedded fingerprint reader, removing the home button entirely.
VentureBeat also reported an anonymous, unverifiable tip with the some extra detail — Apple is apparently holding off on calling the next phone (which is rtumpoured to feature a glass back) the iPhone 7, saving that title for its 10th generation model.
Apple won’t comment on the rumours, but if the past is anything to go by, we should expect to hear more at an announcement in early September .