Submitted by Frank Macey on
The tenth anniversary of the iPhone is fast approaching, and rumors surrounding Apple's next generation smartphones are starting to solidify. The latest report from Mac Otakara points to a flagship model named "iPhone Edition" in the pipeline. Launching alongside the iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus, the iPhone Edition is said to have already passed Apple's engineering verification testing (EVT) process.
The 10th anniversary iPhone will feature a "glass sandwich" design similar to the iPhone 4. Several reports have described a stainless steel chassis inspired by the Apple Watch with front and back glass panels completing the design. While the display will be OLED, it's not clear whether Apple will slightly curve the display or simply keep it flat for an edge-to-edge screen. In addition to reducing or eliminating the bezels, the iPhone Edition may feature an integrated Touch ID apparatus under the display.
Besides the elimination of the home button once and for all, the iPhone Edition will have a dual camera setup similar to the iPhone 7 Plus. However, the Edition camera will be oriented vertically. Mac Otakara speculates the vertical cameras could be used to capture VR content using Emergent VR technology. When holding the device horizontally, the iSight Duo camera would operate similarly to the image capture system on the iPhone 7 Plus.
The iPhone 7s and 7s Plus will be incremental updates to the current models, although reports have indicated the handsets may increase slightly in thickness. This could mean that all three new iPhones released in the fall require new case designs from accessory manufacturers. In any case, the anniversary iPhone has been described with many names besides "iPhone Edition". The device is alternatively referred to as the "iPhone 8" and the "iPhone X" depending on the source.