Apple on Tuesday held its special event, “Wonderlust,” at which the company introduced the iPhone 15, Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Ultra, and some new accessories. But before the event, rumors had been hinting at the launch of some products that have yet to see the light of day. Here’s what Apple didn’t announce at this week’s event.
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At WWDC on Monday, Apple will unveil the latest version of its mobile operating system, iOS 10. With the conference being light on hardware, expectations are high for Apple to announce some major new features for iOS 10 on iPhone and iPad. The rumor mill is quieter than usual, so there’s definitely a bigger opportunity to be surprised with this year’s keynote.
We have some idea about what to expect but we want to hear what you want to see Apple announce next week. Join in the poll after the jump to have your say on what you want to see in iOS 10 …
This week Zac and Benjamin talk about some juicy iOS 10 and iPhone 7 rumors. Along with that, we’ll get into some Apple Music changes and a powerful Siri competitor called Viv. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed.
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The iPhone 7, expected to debut later this year, is not believed to be a major design overhaul from the iPhone 6s, but that doesn’t mean it won’t include some substantial exterior changes, at least according to one sketchy Chinese rumor site. The reports indicate that the iPhone 7 could feature a digital touch-sensitive Home button, essentially making the iPhone front completely flush, replacing the current physical clicky hardware button. This would help make the iPhone 7 completely waterproof and dustproof, via Storm …
In a new report by KGI’s Ming-Chi Kuo, the reliable Apple analyst claims that the iPhone will be seeing a major redesign in 2017, dropping the iconic aluminum casing for an all-glass enclosure with AMOLED screen. This follows on from another of Kuo’s reports in late March, where he first suggested Apple will return to an iPhone design akin to the iPhone 4. It does not seem like the iPhone 7 for 2016 will be seeing such a major overhaul, breaking Apple’s tick-tock pattern of a significant chassis redesign every other generation.
Kuo believes that Apple will be moving to an all-glass enclosure, dropping aluminum completely as it will no longer appear modern or fresh in 2017. Apple’s smartphone competitors are also adopting aluminum designs in droves, making it more likely Apple will want to differentiate with entirely new materials.
Following Apple’s iPhone SE and 9.7-inch iPad Pro launch last month, the MacBook lineup is next up for major product updates from Apple. What needs upgrading? All MacBooks are approaching or passing the one year mark since last being updated — MacBook Airs in March of last year, the new 12-inch MacBook in April, and the Retina MacBook Pros in March and May. But where might the new machines leave the rest of the lineup?
With the iPhone SE behind us, those that didn’t jump on the new 4-inch iPhone are now looking to the fall when Apple is expected to introduce its true next-generation smartphone with the iPhone 7. Or at least that’s what we’re calling it until things become official, and from the sounds of the latest rumors and reports, there’s a lot more up in the air than just the device’s name when it comes to new features, design changes, and more.
This week Zac and Benjamin discuss Apple’s upcoming event, more thoughts on the iPhone SE, as well as some juicy iPhone 7 rumors you don’t want to miss out on. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed. Big thanks to Harry’s this episode.
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It is new iPhone rumor season once again: Following case leaks for Apple’s next-generation iPhone models last week, expected to debut in fall, an image purports to show technical drawings for the iPhone 7 chassis (via NowhereElse.fr).
The images show the back of the phone. At first glance, it’s worth noting that the horizontal antenna lines on the back of the phone are gone completely. There are still lines along the bottom edge of the device, represented by the lighter line following the curve of the body, but the main straight antenna lines seen on iPhone 6s are not present in these drawings. Looking closely, the images also suggest that the camera has changed for the iPhone 7 …
The Ottawa Business Journal is reporting that Apple has leased a 22,000 ft space in Kanata, Ontario. Notably, the location is in close proximity to the BlackBerry QNX offices. Whether Apple is interested in attracting QNX employees for itself is not clear. It is definitely possible that the geography is coincidental. However, QNX is known to be working on autonomous driving and Apple may want to take some of this engineering talent for its own Apple Car research.
Rumors of Apple Car (codename ‘Project Titan’) continue to swirl and there’s plenty time left for Apple to solidify or change its plans, given the expected launch of the new automobile is still five years away. However, that isn’t stopping car company executives weighing in on the rumors. Whilst GM execs diss the idea of Apple investing in an electric car as a ‘gigantic money pit’, an executive from Ford seems enthused by the prospect. In an interview with Trusted Reviews, Don Butler, Executive Director for Ford Connected Vehicles, said that they welcome competition and thinks technology companies can pull it off.
“We welcome others joining. We welcome the activity that’s in the space. We think it’s exciting. It’s actually changed that we are embracing,” said Butler, speaking to TrustedReviews at the CES 2016 tradeshow in Las Vegas. “So I think Apple can do it. I think Google can do it.”
Watch the full interview in the video after the break …
A new report from Chinese media site MyDrivers is starting up the rumor mill for the iPhone 7, Apple’s next major revision to the iPhone due later in 2016. The iPhone 7 is expected to feature external design changes which means big changes inside and out. The report claims specifically that the iPhone 7 Plus (5.5 inch screen) will come in a new 256 GB storage configuration and feature a larger internal battery, rated at 3100 mAH.
For battery comparisons, it’s important to remember that the batteries actually got smaller with the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. 3100 mAH exceeds the battery sizes of the 6s Plus and 6 Plus, featuring 2750 mAH and 2915 mAH respectively.
The track record of the site is somewhat dubious, so it’s probably foolish to treat anything as for certain, but it is thought provoking and both points indicate Apple will be addressing too major pain points with the iPhone range with the iPhone 7 …
This week, we have a special guest Greg Barbosa joining Zac to discuss our expectations for 2016 in the Apple world. It’ll be interesting to see what happens next year. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed.
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The new Apple TV launched in October after a three year chasm of silence stagnating with outdated hardware. According to Digitimes, Apple is upping the pace of its Apple TV hardware iterations. The Chinese report indicates that Apple is preparing to start test production of a new fifth-generation Apple TV in early 2016. The new device would apparently feature significantly faster internals to ‘drastically improve the hardware performance’ and ‘add new functions’.
Coupled with the usual disclaimers about Digitimes’ spotty track record, the report is very vague on exactly what ‘new functions’ a new Apple TV could offer. The Digitimes report implies a launch within six months of the current generation’s debut. This may upset buyers of the 4th generation product but Apple has done stuff like this before (remember the iPad 3 -> iPad 4 six month gap).
A purported photo of an iPhone 6S information sheet has surfaced detailing the specifications of the upcoming iPhone, due to be announced at an event on September 9th. Whilst the detailed technical specifications do not reveal anything new, the page header is intriguing. It suggests that, once again, Apple will offer a 16 GB base model version of the iPhone 6S (via Steve Hemmerstoffer). This matches analysis of iPhone 6S components obtained by 9to5Mac back in June, which showed Apple using 16 GB memory chips in preproduction units.
Low storage space iPhone SKUs is a big complaint in the community. Many had thought this would be the year Apple finally drops 16 GB from the new lineup of phones for good. Although iOS 9 is more efficient regarding storage, features like 12-megapixel photos and 4K video recording generally require a lot more storage space. Some supplier reports have also said the new iPhone lineup will start at 32 GB.
YouTube Gaming, Google’s attempt at taking on Twitch, is allegedly set to launch tomorrow, August 26, according to TechCrunch’s sources. The site will go live at gaming.youtube.com tomorrow in the US and the UK and will act as a central hub where viewers can find and watch people live streaming their own video gameplay.
Google announced that it would be getting in to gaming live-streams a couple of months back and has been working behind the scenes to get its service ready for a public rollout. Once live it will act as a direct competitor to Twitch, an Amazon service which lets gamers stream their gameplay and offer it up to viewers to watch. It’s a huge market to get in to, and one which YouTube clearly has the infrastructure to manage. Just searching through YouTube for game walkthroughs or live-streams should be enough to convince anyone that the game-streaming market is huge.
The questions is: Will YouTube compete with Amazon’s Twitch effectively? Twitch has more than 1.5 million broadcasters and amasses over 100 million visitors every month and cost Amazon nearly $1 billion in September last year. Interestingly, Google itself was an interested party and was bidding in competition with Amazon to buy Twitch last year — at times Google was even believed to have closed the deal. YouTube Gaming will be available to download for iOS when it launches.
According to respected and generally reliable analyst Ming Chi-Kuo from KGI Securities, Apple’s long-awaited 12.9-inch iPad Pro will feature Force Touch stylus support—perhaps for something like an enhanced Pencil from Paper’s FiftyThree. Earlier this month, we detailed what to expect from Force Touch on iOS including support for an enhanced stylus paired with the larger iPad models.
He expects the larger tablet to go in to production between September and October and that the stylus will be able to take advantage of the new iPad’s Force Touch-enabled screen. It’s being imagined as a feature which could help users more easily navigate the larger display of the iPad Pro. KGI has predicted an optional Lightning-charging stylus sold alongside the larger-screened iPad since earlier this year.
We’re ramping up to iPhone launch season and — as expected this time of year — the web is inundated with purported leaks of components, renders and images of Apple’s next smartphones. Over the weekend a couple of new, interesting leaks surfaced purportedly confirming a couple of rumors we’ve already heard. Check out our coverage of the iPhone 6s chassis from earlier in the year.
First up is arguably the most important: A display panel which seemingly adds at least a little credence to the rumors of an iPhone with Force Touch capabilities. On the surface, these screen leaks don’t look overly different to the current iPhone’s display. Look underneath and we see a small rectangle purposefully cut out from the thin metal plate which traditionally separates the screen from the other internal components.
A rumor published this morning predicts that Apple will release it’s long-rumored 12.9-inch iPad Pro alongside the next generation iPad mini during the second half of the holiday season in Q4. Both will allegedly be assembled exclusively by Foxconn. That much we knew.
Speculation from Asian sources referenced by Economic Daily News suggests that Apple wants to ensure that nothing distracts from the focus on the larger iPad Pro, meaning the iPad Air 3 launch would be pushed back until 2016. In this seemingly unlikely scenario, when a Pro tablet is eventually launched, it’s more likely to fit a niche in the market rather than be the new, main device Cupertino is touting.
What’s more, the story goes as far as suggesting that Apple might discontinue the iPad mini range altogether after the 4th generation mini. This suggestion itself is highly speculative. We’re not sure even Apple would know if the iPad mini 4 is its last mini tablet, or not, at this point in time. That seems like a decision that would be made after seeing how the market reacts to the mini 4. Perhaps Apple is planning to build a hybrid Mini/iPod touch next year?
Saying that, with the iPhone 6 Plus on the market now, Apple has a large smartphone on the market which could cannibalize sales of any small tablets it sells. Especially when the presumed second generation 6 Plus hits store shelves.
With the iPad Pro, Apple is expected to launch a large tablet to bridge a gap which may, or may not, exist between tablets and laptops. Or more specifically, between iPad Air and MacBook. With the launch of multi-window multitasking in iOS 9, a larger screened tablet seems a no-brainer. iOS 9 itself also seemingly contains code pointing towards an iPad with a larger screen and higher resolution than the iPad Air currently on the market.
As always, treat any of this information as speculation and take the appropriate dosage of salt along with it. We’re doubtful of a lot being rumored from EDN.
WWDC is right around the corner, and you can definitely expect some interesting changes with iOS 9 and OS X 10.11. This week we discuss some of those changes, along with some new features for the next iPhone. Also, it looks like Jony Ive has moved on from his position as Senior Vice President of Design at Apple. What is he up to now? The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed…
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A new video has been published that compares the rumored iPad Pro shape/size to the current generation iPad. It’s obviously much larger than the iPad Air 2. This rumored tablet is said to feature a 12.3 to 12.9 inch display. Check out the video below for a size comparison between the cases and iPad Air 2…
Sonny Dickson has today posted images of an iPad Pro case that reiterates previous manufacturing renders and reports. Like a render seen in January, the case has holes for stereo speakers situated on top and bottom of the device.
The ‘iPad Pro’ has been widely reported to be in development for some time, featuring a larger 12.3 – 12.9 inch display. It is unknown if the new case images offer any new information — they could have been conjured up based on the previously leaked renders. Chinese case manufacturers have offered mixed indications of future Apple product plans. The iPhone 6 design was widely leaked through cases appearing online, but other instances have not been as fruitful.
Today, there has also been a rumor around the next iPhone’s materials …
New iPhone 6c rumors have begun as an alleged plastic housing surfaces, but is there room for a new model? Also, Jay-Z is coming after Beats Music with some hi-fi competition. Along with that, we discuss exclusive Apple Watch details that you don’t want to miss out on. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed…
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Welcome to the second installment of the revamped Happy Hour podcast. Today we’re talking all about cars. Apple cars. Do they exist? Well, that’s anyone’s guess at this point, but there are a lot of details that line up for this to become a possibility. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed…
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