Enjoying the feel of that sparkly rose-gold iPhone 6S in your hand, and the joy of 3D Touch? We don’t want to spoil that love affair, but Apple’s almost here with the iPhone 7 — and rumors about it are beginning to heat up.
Here’s what we think we know about Apple’s next major smartphone, which is slated to be released September 12.
Touch ID is no longer a button, and 3D Touch rumors
The iPhone’s home button is iconic, but it may disappear on the iPhone 7. Mark Gurman of Bloomberg reports that the iconic home button will no longer be a clickable button, but rather a pressure-sensitive circle that provides haptic feedback when touched much like the trackpad on the new MacBook. Presumably, the new home button will still contain the Touch ID fingerprint sensor.
Analysts at Cowen and Company hinted that the home button may not actually be a button anymore, but rather a flat surface that unlocks the screen with Force Touch tech and your fingerprint. An earlier report from 9to5Mac stated that the flat home button will offer haptic feedback to simulate the feeling of having touched a button.
Related: Hands on: Apple iOS 10 Beta 1
A series of photos submitted to MobiPicker also show what appears to be a touch-sensitive home button. Gone is the distinctive metal bezel that first appeared in the iPhone 5S, apparently by a narrower border that’s reportedly “perfectly in level” with the handset’s surrounding glass and “cannot be pressed in.” Rumor has it that the capacitive home button will support tap-based app shortcuts and gestures for summoning Siri and pulling up a list of running apps, among other functions.
Other reports reveal that 3D Touch will become more useful on the iPhone 7, which makes sense, given its heavy integration into iOS 10. A December 2015 report from Ming-Chi Kuo said that 3D Touch will still feature prominently in the new iPhone — and so far, Kuo believes the tech will work the same way on the iPhone 7 as on the 6S. Earlier reports teased the possibility of multi-3D Touch, but it’s unclear if it will arrive on this year’s iPhone.
Hard press on the Notes app to initiate Quick Actions.
Jeffrey Van Camp/Digital Trends
Source : www.digitaltrends.com
