Leaked photos show re-designed home button for iPhone 7
New feature is touch sensitive, claims the website, making the device 'smoother and faster'
Recently leaked images suggest that the iPhone 7, expected this autumn, will have a touch-sensitive home button.
The blurry photos were given to MobiPicker, which admits that they should be taken "with a grain of salt" but says the "probability of a touch-sensitive home button is high".
The site claims a flat, touch-sensitive button might make the device "significantly smoother and faster" to operate. Users would tap and hold for Siri, double-tap to see running apps – and so on.
The photographs show a slightly re-positioned front camera and proximity sensor – and narrower lower and upper bezels on the handset.
Forbes says there are three good reasons to believe Apple will make this change. First, the existing – physical – home button wears out, so much so that iPhones come with a software back-up.
Second, removing the button will make the handset easier to waterproof – it's rumoured that Apple is working towards an iPhone which can be dropped in water without risk of damage.
Third, Apple has been granted a patent for something called a "bulk amorphous alloy pressure centre" which looks very much like a touch-sensitive home button in the patent description, even down to the illustrated finger pushing it.
Last year, Digitimes reported that Apple was developing technology which would allow it to dispense with the home button altogether and expand the screen of the iphone to fill the entire front of the phone.
Forbes says LG is developing similar technology, which would mean the entire screen could be used as a fingerprint reader, adding security to the design – and hopes that Apple will make use of it, or its own version.
iPhone 7: Has Apple killed off the home button?
16 June
The iPhone 7 may lose one of its regular features, according to a new leak. A grainy image said to be of Apple's next handset suggests that the traditional home button has been replaced by a touch-sensitive pad.
The photo, which has emerged via Mobipicker, shows the front of the device missing the circular metal ring seen on the current generation. In its place is a control which sits flush with the case.
The pictures should be taken with a grain of salt, continues the site, which goes on to spell out how such a change would affect the way the iPhone is used and why Apple may eventually remove the feature.
A physical button is a part susceptible to breaking, says Mobipicker, and given that new iPhones now have a fingerprint scanner embedded into the button, replacing it can be costly. With a new pad, users would have to tap, swipe and hold to carry out actions, rather than pressing down on a part of the phone.
9to5Mac adds that a touch-sensitive button would probably integrate Apple's 3D Touch capabilities, too, to allow it to distinguish between light and soft touches.
Dropping the physical button would also pave the way to make the iPhone waterproof, something already boasted by key rivals such as the Samsung Galaxy S7.
However, it's strongly rumoured that this year's iPhone won't represent a major design overhaul compared to the Phone 6 generation and that Apple is waiting until 2017 to unleash a heavily revised device, marking ten years since the iPhone's introduction.
Rumours stretching back as far as October suggest that the physical button's days are numbered, as Cult of Mac points out, although word has been quiet on this front for some time.
Mashable says that alleged photographs of the iPhone 7 up to now have only shown the back of the handset. The lack of images of the front means a home button change this September isn't "completely implausible".
However, Phone Arena thinks it has comprehensively de-bunked the leaked image – the site has unearthed an Android-powered phone strongly resembling the handset pictured in Mobipicker's scoop.
iPhone 7: What does iOS 10 tell us about next handset?
14 June
Apple's next mobile operating system, the iOS 10, is packed with new features, including a new lock screen, extensive additions to iMessage and greater powers for Siri.
The public beta will take place from July, but a full rollout won't occur until September, alongside the release of the iPhone 7.
While what we've seen from iOS 10 doesn't completely give the game away about Apple's next smartphone, it's possible to glean a few potential additions...
Apple Pencil compatibility?
According to IT Pro, given that a new handwriting feature is to be introduced on iMessage, iOS 10 suggests that the iPhone 7 will come with Apple Pencil support.
Under the new system, users will be able to hand-write small messages and send them through the messaging app. IT Pro think this paves the way for the Apple Pencil to make an appearance alongside the iPhone 7.
It might not be the only iPad Pro feature heading the iPhone 7's way – previous leaks have hinted that the tablet's Smart Connector could appear on the iPhone 7 Plus.
Upgraded cameras
TechRadar picks up a couple of other iOS 10 introductions, including Apple's overhaul of Photos, with recognition software offering different ways to group photographs together, and the new Memories feature, which automatically pieces together slideshows of your snaps.
"It's screaming out for a beefed-up camera to really take fully advantage of all the new features," says the site.
Not much is known about the camera hardware we'll see on the 4.7ins iPhone 7, but the 5.5ins handset is touted to get a dual-camera system.
Expanded 3D Touch
3D Touch was introduced as one of the flagship features of the iPhone 6S. Thanks to iOS10, it now has more commands.
TechRadar expects its abilities to grow with the iPhone 7 and says the handset will have "even more sensitivity baked in to get the best out of the new software".
You'll be able to experience iOS 10 from July if you sign up to Apple's open beta of the software.
iPhone 7: Is the Apple handset about to turn blue?
13 June
Apple's iPhone 7 could come with a new colour option when it is unveiled in September, claims a new leak, backing up long-standing rumours about the upcoming handset.
Forbes's Gordon Kelly picks up and runs through the two case leaks, the first of which comes from MacRumors.
The site reports on an iPhone 7 phone case made by a third-party accessories-maker. When fitted snuggly onto the body of the iPhone 6S, the cover reveals that little in the way of form factor changes are heading to the new phone.
However, it adds, pre-reveal phone cases aren't always spot on as "they're only as precise as the information they've been built on".
Nevertheless, the level of consistency behind design rumours over the last few months, combined with how they match up with the cases obtained by the site, mean the covers offer a good insight into what to expect.
The iPhone 6S fits the case almost perfectly – not entirely surprising, considering we're expecting a handset little changed from the current generation. However, at the bottom, the cut-out that would usually be present for a headphone jack has been replaced with a pill-shaped punch-out identical to the one used on the opposite side of the handset. It's strongly rumoured that Apple will drop the port on the next iPhone - and this case aligns with those rumours.
There's another visible difference in terms of cut-outs, though. The hole used for the camera hardware is larger and in a different position, linking back to rumours that the standard 4.7ins iPhone 7 will get a slightly revised camera.
Elsewhere, the second phone case picked up by Kelly sports a different camera cut-out. This case, made by Olixar, uses a much lower and wider hole positioned closer to the top of the handset, hinting at the iPhone 7's camera staying in the same place as the iPhone 6's.
Neither case is for the iPhone 7 Plus, which is rumoured to have big changes in terms of camera hardware. It's thought that Apple will make use of an exclusive dual-camera system on its larger 5.5ins handset.
Away from these phone cases, MacRumors has sourced a new piece of information from renowned blog Mac Otakara that hints at a new colour option for the iPhone 7.
The Japanese site says Apple will replace its space grey option introduced on 2013's iPhone 5S with a new "deep blue" shade, alongside the existing silver, gold, and rose gold options.
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