iPhone 8 Specs, Release Date, Price & Rumors

Since the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S8, more and more rumors and supposed leaks are starting to emerge about the Apple iPhone 8. The market is buzzing with the possibility that Apple might be releasing not just two, but three different models. The rumors surrounding an “anniversary” iPhone 8 are especially interesting. The news is that the iPhone 8 may feature a rear-facing 3D laser for autofocus and augmented reality.

Apple iPhone 8: price and variants
Let’s talk about the price. The Apple iPhone 8 will cost a pretty penny. The model created for the tenth anniversary of the Cupertino firm phone leaves the “normal” iPhone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus as alternatives. While the two “normal” iPhones are expected to follow the current pattern of prices, it is expected that the iPhone 8 approaches the threshold of $1000. Here is what the price distribution may look like:

In recent years Apple has presented its new iPhone in September, placing them on the market shortly after. Even the iPhone 8 will probably be presented to the ninth month of the year, but the wait to have it in your hand be a bit longer than usual. BGR reported that Apple has been choosing components for the iPhone Anniversary model that will be completely new, and this will ensure that there will be an adequate inventory of the iPhone 8 only in October or November (even if there is even talk of January 2018).

Meanwhile, there are contradictory statements about the future availability of the iPhone 8. Some rumors say that the anniversary iPhone won’t be sold until 2018, Digitimes from Asia announces that there are no problems with the suppliers and the new iPhone will go on sale just after its debut. The release date and availability of the iPhone 8 is an open ended question.

Apple iPhone 8: technical specs
There’s no truly reliable information out there about the iPhone 8’s technical specs. It is assumed that the new Apple smartphone will be equipped with a more powerful processor, probably called the A11. The anniversary model should also have more internal memory, up to 256GB.

Apple iPhone 8: camera
Apple might also be experimenting a bit with its camera setup. The dual camera orientation might be switched from horizontal to vertical on the iPhone 8 to improve the image quality. In addition, Apple’s latest smartphone might also feature a dual-lens dual camera on the front of the phone.

Apple iPhone 8: display
All the experts agree, the screen of the iPhone 8 will be the strong point of the new Apple smartphone. Just like the Samsung Galaxy S8, Apple will also greatly reduce bezels around the screen for the iPhone anniversary. While the display resolution is still unknown, it is almost certain that Apple will equip the iPhone 8 with an OLED panel, while the 7S model will keep the LCD display. Fingerprint reader, speaker, camera and sensors might be integrated behind the glass.

 A home button is missing and the fingerprint sensor has also disappeared. Most likely, the latter will disappear behind the AMOLED display on the iPhone 8. Qualcomm had recently presented such a technology, but it won’t be ready before summer 2018 for consumer devices. The virtual home button will probably be displayed in the middle bottom of the screen, perhaps sometimes invisibly, like on the Samsung Galaxy S8.

The production of the next iPhone generation has already begun in China. Two photos have been leaked, showing the backs of three different iPhones as well as a front glass panel. The three backs differ in size as well as camera configuration.

The two left backs are supposed to belong to the iPhone 7S and 7S Plus, while the front glass and the right back are part of the iPhone 8. The latter can be seen in greater detail in a separate image.

iphone 8 leak
The iPhone 8, the tenth anniversary edition of the cult smartphone from Cupertino, seems much different from previous models, technically speaking. As a leak shows, it will have a nearly bezel-less display and ditch the classic home button. The bezels around the screen should only be around 2.6 mm thin. While the other two new iPhones, presumably dubbed the iPhone 7S and 7S Plus, continue to rely on the classic tall bezels and homebutton design, the iPhone 8 seems to be a complete departure from that.

With this design, however, the Apple engineers are setting themselves up for an extremely difficult task. Not only do they appear to be planning to build a fingerprint sensor into the display (a first for Apple), the rumored additional 3D camera and sensors will also need to be integrated into the glass and display panel as well. There are already several interesting aspects to the design for the speaker, which would use cantilever piezoelectric ceramic acoustic technology. This would allow sound to come right out of the screen’s glass panel. All these issues will most likely ensure that Apple will delay getting the phone into users’ hands.

One thing is clear even now: the bloody battle to grab the crown of the smartphone market begins with the iPhone 8. If Apple manages to develop its new design without irritating the fans, the iPhone anniversary will be a huge hit.

There’s another new leak of the design, which differs from the others. In this one, the mockup drawings show a fingerprint scanner on the back, with a vertically oriented dual camera. The rendering shows that on the front, there’s a recess in the display to make room for the call speaker, front camera and sensors. The gap in the display is much larger than that of the Essential phone, for example.

iphone 8 design
In an unofficial concept video, The 90s Robot shows how the iPhone 8 with fingerprint sensor might look behind the display glass instead of on the back. Apple will have to depend on Synaptics to deliver the technology fast enough, functionally and in large enough quantities.

Apple iPhone 8: accessories
For a special occasion like the iPhone’s tenth anniversary, Apple should be coming up with something special in terms of accessories. It’s very likely that the iPhone 8 will come with AirPods, rather than the usual EarPods with a lightning cable and connector. It’s also expected that a docking station like Samsung’s DeX could be available for the iPhone 8.

Apple iPhone 8: fingerprint scanner
The fingerprint scanner could be a unique aspect of the iPhone 8, because it would be the first time a manufacturer will hide this sensor under the display glass.

Apple iPhone 8: 3D facial recognition camera
The Korea Economic Daily reports that LG may be supplying Apple the facial recognition cameras for the iPhone 8. LG Innotek, the parts manufacturing unit of LG, is investing in a new manufacturing facility worth about $240 million, and according to this report, it’s going to be dedicated to making these components for Apple.

Apple iPhone 8: wireless charging and waterproofing
The Cupertino firm prefers simplicity over wires, and so wireless charging may be added to the upcoming iPhone 8.

Apple iPhone 8: rear-facing 3D laser
A report from Fast Company says that the upcoming iPhone 8 may feature a rear-facing 3D laser, which can be used not just for autofocus, but also for augmented reality. With Apple’s recent announcement of ARKit, its new platform for AR on iOS 11, it’s a good bet that we’ll see some new AR-focused components on the new iPhone, or on a 2018 iPhone. A laser like this one would provide better depth detection using Time-of-Flight measurement for AR apps, making the experience better for users.

With the release of the Samsung Galaxy S8, it should be clear to everyone that, in order for it to remain competitive, Apple will need to step up its game. If the engineers in Cupertino do succeed in creating an iPhone with all these rumored display specs and features, it will definitely be an innovative push within the market.

Source: AndroidPit