Submitted by Marshall Walker on
A 4-inch iPhone has allegedly made its way into the wild thanks to an unnamed source at Foxconn. M.I.C. Gadget has posted a short 40-second video to YouTube featuring the rumored device. The video doesn't show much, just someone flipping the device around revealing the device's SIM card tray and its iPhone 6-like design. It is unknown if the video is real or fake, but it's the first big purported Apple leak of 2016.
Apple is expected to hold a March 2016 keynote to unveil its second-generation Apple Watch. Some analysts, such as KGI’s Ming-Chi Kuo, believe Apple will also announce its long awaited iPad Air 3 and a new 4-inch iPhone at the event.
The 4-inch iPhone is being called the iPhone 6c by the press since it is expected to replace the discontinued iPhone 5c as part of Apple's current iPhone lineup, but it has also been called the iPhone 5e and iPhone 7c. Apple is rumored to be ditching the "unapologetically plastic" shell of the iPhone 5c in favor of an all metal casing for the iPhone 6c. It is also rumored that the new device will ship with an A8 chip and NFC for Apple Pay. M.I.C. Gadget noted that the device will only be available in one color, and feature an 8GB option when it is released.
There have also been rumors that Apple's next-generation devices will finally feature an IP rating for water and dust resistance. The rumor mill has suggested that the iPad Air 3 will get the honor of being Apple's first water resistant iOS device, but what about the 4-inch iPhone? If Apple really does decide to call it the iPhone 7c will it also be water resistant so it better fits with the upcoming iPhone lineup this fall?
In previous years it used to be easy to guess if these type or rumors were true since Apple followed a more traditional release schedule, but the iPhone maker has deviated from its typical product launch cycle in recent years. That's what makes rumors of a 4-inch iPhone so believable. There are still some people who prefer smaller handsets to the more popular larger 5.5-inch size of the iPhone 6s. So a 4-inch iPhone may actually be a more popular option than a colorful plastic iPhone 5c.A 4-inch display would put the new phone between the original 3.5-inch display of previous models and Apple's 4.7-inch iPhone 6s.