The iPhone 16 will reportedly steal a key design feature from the iPhone 12
Apple may look to the past for its future… again
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Appleis expected to debut itsiPhone 15line in September, but that hasn’t stopped leakers from speculating about next year’s iPhone 16 series.
We’ve already reported on rumors hinting thatthe iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max could be the biggest iPhones yet, and new CAD images obtained by9to5Maccorroborate that suggestion. Now, though, we’re also hearing that the base iPhone 16 could borrow a key design feature from the iPhone 12 line.
According to Twitter leaker@URedditor, the iPhone 16 will sport a vertical camera layout, rather than the diagonal setup used on every iPhone since theiPhone 13. “This will make the device instantly recognizable as the latest model” in 2024, @URedditor writes.
The base model iPhone 16 will have a vertical camera layout, as opposed to diagonal on iPhone 15. This will make the device instantly recognizable as the latest model.Currently, an iPhone 12-style design is in testing, though there is another design as well, same layout.May 22, 2023
Despite the rumored addition of a 48MP main lens on the base iPhone 15, Apple’s next vanilla flagship will reportedly stick with the same camera arrangement as theiPhone 14, so it figures that the company could shake-up the appearance of the iPhone 16 by, well, going back to what it knows.
Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time Apple has looked to its own product history for design inspiration. The company had seemingly abandoned theiPhone 4’s straight-sided aesthetic with theiPhone 6, before returning to it with theiPhone 12. The iPhone 15, meanwhile, will reportedly be reminiscent of theiPhone 11by having slightly curved edges (see the images below).
It should also go without saying that the iPhone 16 won’t use the same cameras as the iPhone 12. The latter uses two 12MP main shooters, and although the iPhone 14 likewise employs that now-outdated setup, the aforementioned 48MP main lens expected to arrive on the iPhone 15 will surely make its way to the iPhone 16, too.
As for what other features the iPhone 16 could introduce, we’re expecting the phone – or its Pro-level siblings, at least – to sport solid-state (i.e. haptic) volume and power buttons. TheiPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra were widely rumored to get solid-state buttons, butApple analysts recently poured water on those claims, adding that the feature is more likely to arrive with the iPhone 16 line owing to its technological complexity.
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In addition to solid-state power buttons, the iPhone 16 Pro will reportedly get a periscope lens and a larger display, too, which has pretty muchkilled our excitement for the iPhone 15 Pro.
In other words, the iPhone 16 Pro could be a smaller (and potentially cheaper) version of the much-rumorediPhone 15 Ultra, which is expected to arrive this year in place of an iPhone 15 Pro Max. We’ll have to wait until September for confirmation of that phone’s existence, though, so stay tuned to TechRadar for the latest news on what is likely to be this year’s hottest smartphone launch.
Axel is TechRadar’s UK-based Phones Editor, reporting on everything from the latest Apple developments to newest AI breakthroughs as part of the site’s Mobile Computing vertical. Having previously written for publications including Esquire and FourFourTwo, Axel is well-versed in the applications of technology beyond the desktop, and his coverage extends from general reporting and analysis to in-depth interviews and opinion.
Axel studied for a degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick before joining TechRadar in 2020, where he then earned an NCTJ qualification as part of the company’s inaugural digital training scheme.
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