From 2017 onwards, it certainly looks like the trend is going to be oversized smartphones with huge screens and virtually no bezels. And the new trendsetter looks set to be the iPhone 8.
After a variety of leaked designs and cases purportedly produced for the new model, the latest leak from Weibo demonstrates how Apple will drastically upsize the iPhone this year. The new protective panels that were leaked exactly match schematics, renderings and cases manufactured by third parties, illustrating the confidence Apple’s smaller associates have in their information.
One thing all these pictures, cases and diagrams indicate is an extraordinary jump from the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 to a remarkably large 5.8-inch iPhone 8. This is even bigger than Samsung’s shift from the Galaxy S7/Galaxy S7 Edge to the latest Galaxy S8/Galaxy S8 Plus.
iPhone 8 users are, however, expected to lose a chunk of this additional space to a brand new ‘Function Area’ — a shortcut and notification region at the bottom of the screen which will come in the place of the home button. At the top, some space will also go towards a cut-out on the upper bezel which will be home to the sensors and front facing camera.
Many cynics might at this stage point out that we will only know with full certainty whether these reports are true or not the day when Tim Cook officially holds up the new iPhone 8 at its launch. But we are rapidly approaching a level of certainty and consistency well above that of leaks before the release of earlier iPhone models.
Google’s huge Pixel 2 ‘Taimen’ and Samsung’s massive Galaxy Note 8 will be released at more or less the same time — so we are heading for a spectacular smartphone war