Updated 05/10/18: A pair of new rumors, including a major surprise to the iPhone SE 2 form factor and the display technology that will be used in this year’s lower-cost LCD iPhone.
Now that we’re well into 2018, rumors about the next iPhone have started to pile up. We’ll keep track of everything that’s being said and analyze what seems feasible in this article so you can keep up with the latest iPhone gossip.
LCD-based 2018 iPhone to use LG’s MLCD+ display tech
Prior rumors suggest that Apple is going to replace the iPhone 8/X lineup with a trio of phones: one that is physically similar to the iPhone X, one that is a plus-sized version of that, and a third cheaper model sized in-between with less expensive components, including an LCD display.
A new report from Business Korea claims that Apple will fit that third model with an MLCD+ display from LG—the same technology used in LG’s new G7 ThinQ.
MLCD+ takes the traditional red/green/blue subpixel arrangement of most LCDs and adds a fourth white pixel that has no color filter. This allows the display to be much brighter and use less power than traditional LCDs. LG claims that the display can cover 100 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut, and indeed the G7 ThinQ earned high marks for its bright, colorful, accurate display. It’s a step behind the best OLEDs, but ahead of most other LCDs.
Plausible? The rumor source here doesn’t inspire confidence, as Business Korea isn’t known for breaking fresh details from the supply chain. However, Apple is always concerned about display quality on its new phones and this seems like the most promising mass-producible LCD technology out there. The combination of high brightness (for HDR compatibility and direct sunlight viewing), low power consumption, and accurate colors in the DCI-P3 color gamut sounds like exactly the sort of technology for which Apple would look.
iPhone SE 2 to have iPhone X-style display with notch
Case maker Olixar is already producing a screen protector for this year’s iPhone SE (whether it is called the iPhone SE 2 or iPhone SE 2018). It is based on details gleaned from its supply partners in China, not on technical data from Apple. That part isn’t unusual.
What is a surprise is that the screen protector is very clearly made for a phone with the general size and shape of the current iPhone SE, but with an iPhone X-style edge-to-edge display with a notch for the front camera.
Olixar
Plausible? We know Apple is all-in on the whole slim-bezel, edge-to-edge display with a notch for the front sensors thing. But the iPhone SE occupies a place way down at the bottom of the iPhone price stack, and we figured it would still be a couple years before it got a display layout to match the iPhone X and the other new iPhones coming in 2018.
A year ago, Olixar correctly predicted the form factor of the iPhone X, too. Maybe it got lucky, or maybe its sources are really good. If this comes to pass, we expect the iPhone SE 2 to be an even more popular choice among those who want a smaller iPhone, but we’re worried about ballooning prices.
What’s more, this screen protector leaves no room for a Touch ID sensor, and the notch is too small for the TrueDepth module used in the iPhone X. So either Apple is adding a costly new smaller TrueDepth module to it’s bottom-end phone (not likely), or is incorporating a pricey and unproven through-the-display fingerprint reader (not likely), or is putting a Touch ID sensor on the back (ehhh...), or is going to ship a phone with no biometric authentication method (yikes!).
We still expect the 2018 model of the iPhone SE to be announced in the next month or two, so I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
2018 iPhones to come with new 18W USB-C charger
This rumor was reported on May 2, 2018.
According to a post on the Chinese social network Weibo, which cites supply chain sources, Apple has a newly designed 18W USB-C power adapter that it will ship with the new iPhones this fall. The phones themselves will still have a lightning connector, they will just come packaged with the new power adapter and a USB-C-to-lightning cable.
It’s impossible to know exactly what the track record is of this source, but it included a kinda-sorta-official-looking design diagram.
Plausible? It’s tough to say. The design shown in the Weibo post breaks with years of tradition for Apple’s various power adapters, and there’s no track record of leaks here to rely on. On the other hand, Apple really should to do something like this. Apple still bundles paltry 5-watt USB-A adapters with its iPhones, when they are capable of charging much faster. We tested a variety of chargers, and found the 12-watt iPad adapter and 29-watt USB-C adapter (sold separately) to be vastly superior; they get the latest iPhones to 50% charged in half the time.
It really is time for Apple to start packing better power adapters in with its iPhones. They’re premium products, but users are not getting a premium fast-charging experience without shelling out for a different adapter.
New iPhone SE in May, without headphone jack
This rumor was reported on April 20, 2018.
According to the Mac Otakara blog, the new iPhone SE is due to release in May and will not have a headphone jack.
The Japanese site spoke with “many iPhone case makers” at the Global Sources Mobile Electronics trade show. Those case manufacturers say they expect the upgraded iPhone SE to have the same size and dimensions as the current iPhone SE, and to continue using Touch ID. But they expect it not to have a headphone jack. That means, once the iPhone 6 and 6s are discontinued (likely late this year), Apple will not sell any iPhones with headphone jacks.
Though the outside physical dimensions and overall design is said to be nearly identical to the current iPhone SE, the case makers expect the phone to have Qi wireless charging just like the latest iPhones, which will almost certainly mean a switch to a glass back. The internals should get a bump, too, to an A10 Fusion chip (current iPhone SE models use the A9), which will improve speed and enable advanced image capabilities like support for the HEIF and HEVC compression standards.
Plausible? Apple seems hell-bent on getting rid of headphone jacks, but it does seem a little odd to do it on its “affordable” phone. All the other rumors lately agree on an upgrade to the A10 processor, and that the new iPhone SE will keep the same size and shape as the current model. Those rumors make perfect sense, too.
When it comes to wireless charging, put the odds at about 50/50. It adds a bit of cost and complexity, but not too much. Beyond that, we expect the iPhone SE 2 to have mostly internal changes, keeping the same size, shape, display, and low cost of the current model.
New iPhone SE coming soon
This rumor was reported on April 18, 2018.
While we had all but given up on the release of a new iPhone SE this year, a filing by the Eurasian Economic Commission suggests a sequel to the 2-year-old handset may indeed be on the way. As spotted by French site Consomac, the filing lists 11 previously unseen models of iPhone: A1920, A1921, A1984, A2097, A2098, A2099, A2101, A2103, A2104, A2105 and A2106.
Apple typically differentiates its iPhones by the modem inside them, and 11 is an abnormally large number of models (the iPhone X only has three, by comparison). However, Consomac notes that sales of this particular model have been approved in the Armenian, Belorussian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and Russian regions, which suggests Apple is expanding the iPhone SE’s reach into more markets.
Plausible? It’s been a while since we heard a rumor about the iPhone SE, but the last one did say it would arrive in the first half of 2018. And it should be noted that the Eurasian Economic Commission also outed the model numbers of the new 9.7-inch iPad, so it’s safe to assume that the information here is accurate. Since it’s way too early for iPhone X2 model numbers, it’s probable that a new iPhone SE model could land before WWDC kicks off in early June.
New iPhone X could start at $899
This rumor was reported on March 26, 2018.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Amit Daryanani has issued a research note to investors that predicts the price of Apple’s iPhone lineup this year. Specifically, it says that the second-generation iPhone X (whatever Apple will call it) will cost $100 less than the current model, starting at $899. A larger 6.5-inch “Plus” model will debut this year at a $999 starting price.
The report does not mention price of the widely-rumored 6.1-inch LCD-based model, though it is expected to cost less than the two OLED iPhones, probably with lesser specs like a single rear camera or a less speedy processor. It makes sense for it to cost around $799.
Plausible? If true, Apple’s iPhone lineup this year would probably look something like this:
- iPhone X Plus (6.5-inch): $999
- iPhone X (2nd gen 5.8-inch): $899
- iPhone X LCD (6.1-inch): $799
- iPhone 8 Plus: $669
- iPhone 8: $549
- iPhone 7 Plus: $549
- iPhone 7: $449
That seems perfectly reasonable. There’s no doubt that making the iPhone X available only to those who are willing to spend $1,000 or more makes it hard to obtain, but Apple had two other new phones this year (the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus) at other price points. Whatever Apple calls its iPhones this year, it will have to make sure there are new models available around $800 or less if it wants to maintain its sales volume.
Another report on iPhone specs
This rumor was reported on February 26, 2018.
Mark Gurman and Debby Wu’s report for Bloomberg offers more details on the specs of the new iPhones that could be coming this fall.
Bloomberg says the largest iPhone, code-named D33, will be the same size as the iPhone 8 Plus, but the edge-to-edge screen makes the screen size an inch larger than the Plus phone. The OLED screen will have a resolution of 1,242 x 2,688 pixels. You’ll probably be able to use split-screen mode on some apps, like you can on the iPhone 8 Plus.
The 6.5-inch iPhone will have Face ID, though Bloomberg did not specifically say if there will be a notch like that on the iPhone X. Apple is considering dual-SIM card support in some regions where the feature in popular (Europe and Asia), but the company would rather use E-SIM, which allows users to switch service providers without charging a physical SIM card.
The second new iPhone would essentially be an update of the current 5.8-inch iPhone X. Both of the new iPhones would have Apple’s A12 processor and iOS 12. Apple may offer a gold finish for both the 6.5- and 5.8-inch iPhones, though Apple wanted to produce a gold iPhone X and ran into production problems.
The third new iPhone, according to Bloomberg, will be a new lower-priced model, but will feature an edge-to-edge LCD screen and Face ID. The edges will be aluminum, not the stainless steel that will be on the other two iPhones. The back will be glass to allow for wireless charging.
Plausible? There are a lot of similarities between the Bloomberg report and Ming-Chi Kuo’s prediction this past January. Kuo also said that Apple will release a 6.5-inch iPhone and a new 5.8-inch model at the higher price range, with an LCD-based iPhone in the lower price range. Knowing what we do about iPhone sales, it’s not surprising that Apple is hoping to boost sales by making an affordable iPhone with many of the bells and whistles of the high-end model. Now that there are two similar reports by people who tend to have a good track record on Apple’s plans, it looks like we’ll see three new iPhones this fall.
Two high-end iPhones and a new low-end model
This rumor was reported on January 23, 2018.
The ever-popular iPhone tipster Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI Securities, who predicts iPhone details based primarily on watching the supply and manufacturing chain, has issued a report with new details on what he believes will be some of the major differences between iPhone models this year.
As previously reported, the new iPhones this year will, Kuo believes, consist of two models similar to the iPhone X—one at the same 5.8 inch size and one larger model. Size differences aside (and perhaps display resolution), these phones will be identical.
Then, instead of continuing to sell this year’s iPhone X at a reduced price as Apple typically does, the company will instead produce a new LCD-based iPhone with many of the same design cues, including a taller aspect ratio and very slim bezels. We should point out that the image above shows bezels all around the display on the LCD model that may be too small to achieve with an LCD display.
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