When a company as popular as Apple or Samsung release a phone, people often know the buzz behind the release before the phone ever reaches the market. As is customary with the pre-release phase, a lot of buzz generates and tons of leaks are thrown all over the place. Only some of those leaks end up true. With all the uncertainty, however, people still love to speculate and build hopes on what might be in the next phone model. Although I am not personally a major fan of Apple, I thought it might be fun to think about what the iPhone 6 might look like and how it might work. Let’s discuss!
1: Let’s Talk Big Screens
Since about two months ago, the rumor mill has been throwing out various screen sizes for the new iPhone. Some say it won’t make the screen much larger, and others say that your mind will be blown by the increase in size. What’s true?
Well, there was this leak… KDB Daewoo Securities Research has come up with a rumored specification sheet for both the iPhone 6 and the Samsung Galaxy S5. According to the rumors, the spec sheet says that there will be two new iPhone 6 models, but it’s nothing like the 5S/5C combo. One of them will have a 4.7-inch screen and another will have a 5.5-inch screen. If this is true, I must congratulate Apple on catching up to the market. These screen sizes have been on demand for a while, and I’ve been wondering why the 5S was released with a measly 4-inch display. At the very least, this should be good news for people who are thinking about buying their first Apple phone. I’m not exactly sure how the hardcore Apple fans will react to this, but I personally am happy with the change.
2: Screen Material
Apple recently released the iPad Air, a light-weight and slick little tablet. The secret behind its light weight was the result of a different choice in screen material, namely IGZO (or indium gallium zinc oxide). Comprised of multiple layers much like any other screen, IGZO has one thing that sets it apart. Its electron mobility is anywhere between 20 to 50 times more efficient when compared to amorphous silicon (a-Si). The vast majority of screens we use in our daily lives have a very thin layer of silicon that translates electrical input into the vast colors we see. The problem is that this layer isn’t necessarily transparent, so it absorbs a lot of the light from the LEDs that make the screen visible.
This presents two issues:
- It lowers sunlight visibility.
- It drains the battery unnecessarily.
With an IGZO screen, you don’t need as much light to actually show a visible image on your device. Both image quality and battery life improve as a result of this. I highly suspect that Apple will continue using IGZO on its next iPhone, given the successful implementation on the iPad Air. Get ready to enjoy long usage without draining juice.
3: Will It Still Catch Your Prints?
One of the features that caused the most controversy in Apple’s release of the iPhone 5S was the fingerprint scanner. Some felt a little iffy about it, while others were very excited at the prospect of having that extra security. The iPhone 6, in all likelihood, will continue this trend.
4: Operating System
iOS 8 generated a lot of buzz as the potential operating system for the next phone in Apple’s line. Unfortunately, some contradicting reports are showing that the iPhone 6 will be released with iOS 7.2. Personally, I’m not sure what to say about this, since nobody really has any clue about what this really means for those who plan to buy the phone.
In The End, Anything Goes.
While it’s fun to speculate on what the iPhone 6 will have, keep in mind that these are just speculations based on rumors, and not real concrete data. From what I gathered however, these seem be the most accurate rumors. Still, take everything with a (huge) grain of salt!
Do you have ideas for what the new iPhone might have? Throw us a bone in the comments below!
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