iPhone 8. The name itself is enough to send tech lovers everywhere into a frenzy. Whether you've been waiting for wireless charging, or simply hoping for new color options, rumors are running rampant in the tech communities. Apple has done a marvelous job of staying relatively quiet on the matter, letting rumors build around the phone's upcoming release. With the company's annual event looming near in the next couple of weeks, the rumor mill is spinning faster than ever before, churning out news that can be either fun or out of this world unbelievable.
There has been so much speculation about the specifications of the device and the new technology being implemented. While many of these are either pretty self-assured (water resistance, improved camera), some of these rumors promise to bring about some of the most amazing technological advances in the smartphone industry. With so many rumors flying around, sometimes it's hard to keep track of what's realistic, and what's hogwash. Still, there is is going to be some wildly impressive tech built into this thing. So get hyped and be ready to get excited for Apple's latest (and most impressive) iPhone. In the not too distance future, you'll be able to pop into an Apple Store near you and see it for yourself.
15 Copper Is The New Rose Gold
One of the most talked about rumors surrounding the new iPhone 8 is its color. Apparently, there's a new color entering circulation that will have a copper tone. The rose gold phone had become a staple in the Apple community, but if these photos are to be believed the color has changed somewhat to incorporate a copper tone. Whether this is an intentional design change or perhaps the new phone material is changing the hue of the rose gold, this could cause a major upset for a wide subsection of iPhone owners. As with everything on this list, however, this is just a rumor, and the final design color can end up being the same rose gold shade that everyone has come to know and love.
14 Your Face Is The New Fingerprint
Facial Recognition has become one of the most sought after tech upgrades for the iPhone, and the iPhone 8 might hold some promise in that area. There has been a lot of speculation that Apple has found a way for your phone to read you even from a flat surface. This is quite a juicy bit of news, as this development might signal the replacement of the Touch ID system in favor of facial recognition, opening the phone merely by scanning your face. This new facial recognition software could lead to some amazing new apps and uses in already existing apps, such as an improvement on the social media app Snapchat or Instagram with their wacky filters or helping to prevent thieves from breaking into your phone with higher security upgrades. Let's just hope Apple keeps in step with their trademark privacy ethos.
13 No Strings Attached
Wireless Charging is a feature for the iPhone that has been hinted at (and suggested) for a long time. Recent rumors for the iPhone 8 suggest that this feature may finally be coming to fruition. No more annoying lightning cords, or fiddling with fitting a dongle into your phone. Although the time to charge the iPhone 8 reportedly would be half of the speed that Android phones take to charge, which means users will be sacrificing charge time for wireless charging convenience. It's a double edged sword that could promise a much-needed change to the phone's charging system and battery life as a whole, but would that be a worthwhile venture if it meant sacrificing more time to the charge itself? Only time will tell.
12 Remember The iPhone 4?
One of the rumored updates to the upcoming iPhone 8 is the introduction of an all glass body around a stainless steel frame similar to the Apple Watch. This would give the phone a much smoother look and should improve both the handling of the device and the durability as well. Not only this, but the addition of the glass body could help improve the screen detail and the graphics we see on the phone itself. This will be explored in another rumor later on in the article, but needless to say, the addition of a glass body could signal the beginning stage of a better phone overall. Let's hope this means that gaming graphics and streaming media through the upcoming iPhone 8 means better visual representations and a higher resolution picture. Plus, we might be getting a much better water resistant phone in the process.
11 No Touching!
One of the most important pieces of tech in the iPhone has been the implementation of the Touch ID system. In this system, using the home button you can scan your fingerprint and heartbeat to get into your phone. However, the home button can be tricky as you have to position your finger in the exact right way in which you first did when setting up your phone and have to put the right amount of pressure on said button. However, if the rumors are true, then the Touch ID will either be in the phone's display or eliminated in favor of the highly anticipated facial recognition software. Both options have great benefits, as the phone display option will allow for a much clearer fingerprint recognition process and the facial recognition would eliminate the need for fingerprints entirely and focus on a much more unique security measure.
10 iPhone Phone Home
Another implementation for the touch id system going forward would see the home button eliminated from the physical hardware of the phone. Instead, the iPhone 8 would actually see the home button be a digital representation on the screen, moving depending on the apps and programs being run on the phone at any given time. A moving, digital home button would save an inordinate amount of time on misread finger analysis on the physical home button. There would also be less chance of a misread print since there would be no home button to gather dust, dirt or smudges of any kind. No physical home button but rather having the home button on display screen and giving it the ability to disappear while watching a streaming movie or playing high definition games opens up a much cleaner and seamless experience with the iPhone.
9 Look At All The Colors
One of the features iPhone users have been waiting to see is the implementation of a more flexible screen other than the LCD screen users are used to. This display made with flexible plastic OLED instead of LCD would allow for a thinner device that consumes less power and a better display with higher contrast ratio and more true life colors. Photos would pop off of the screen and might actually improve photo and video editing capabilities if the true video or photo colors were able to be viewed properly. This also creates a much crisper and cleaner media viewing experience and strengthens the display of the screen as well. This can improve the chances of shattering screens being reduced and allow for a larger screen to be installed as well, should the rumors prove to be true, and would make the iPhone 8 an innovative step forward for the company.
8 Get Wet
The iPhone 8 rumor mill is, of course, getting more and more accurate as we get so close to its official launch. One thing we're sure to see is an Improved Water Resistance (with an IP68 water resistance rating). So much hype was put on the water resistance of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, and the increase in videos involving underwater adventures or family fun in the pool increased with that hype. With this increase in water resistance, the iPhone 8 should be able to withstand greater depths and last longer submerged under water. This will let a lot of photographers (and photo-junkies) have a ton of fun taking unique photos.
7 Take A Picture — It'll Last Longer
One of the additions smartphone users always look for is for improved photo taking capabilities. Rumors are suggesting that this will be no different with the iPhone 8, and will include drastically changed photo capturing with a vertical rear camera. The new phone is supposed to also include a dual-camera setup for front facing FaceTime camera and 3D laser to help focus camera and help with Augmented Reality apps. This is a state of the art improvement to the camera system of the iPhone. If it's true, we will see some truly breathtaking video and photo possibilities, as well as a more intimate FaceTime experience and a fantastic implementation of AR. In this age of social media, where pictures and video are shared every second of the day, this improvement would be a welcome one.
6 Shhh!!!
Imagine this: you are sitting down, maybe playing Xbox and watching an intense exchange between Trevor and Michael in GTA V. As the exchange looks to be heating up to a confrontation and you grip your controller in eager anticipation, your phone beeps at you. You got a Facebook message from a family member. You try to ignore it, but the phone keeps beeping and interrupts the flow of your game. Well, if the rumor mill is true, then the iPhone 8 would feature a new notifications system that mutes sounds when the camera detects you are looking at the notifications. This would implement the facial recognition software and strengthen that rumor, and would end the barrage of notifications that interrupt your day but prove to be necessary as a source of information or a reminder of important tasks that lay ahead for us. So long annoying tweets from your nosy neighbor, and hello sweet quiet!
5 POWER In Your Hands
Power is the name of the game when it comes to the smartphone industry. Strengthening the speed and resolution of the phone while eliminating as much charge time and power output is the key to any successful phone launch. Rumors suggest that when Apple unveils its iPhone 8 phone in September, they will be introducing the phone's 10-nanometer A11 chip, which is capable of higher-width memory buses and a much lower power output. This would theoretically allow for a much longer use time, as well as a more powerful output. Should this rumor be true, we might be looking at one of the more powerful phones in Apple's arsenal, and if the rumors are true, this chip would also be featured in the upcoming 7s and 7s Plus series.
4 Whoa, That's Deep Bro
As discussed earlier in this article, the front facing facial recognition software would be a fantastic extra security feature. However, the big question is how one would go about developing such an important piece of technology that can capture a full face to recognize? With 3D front camera sensing capabilities by PrimeSense, allowing it to find location and depth of objects as it scans you and your surroundings. This would create a much more in-depth analysis of one's face or of one's surroundings, helping to also make photo capturing such as "selfies" and video capture a much more realistic and breathtaking experience. Imagine if you could take a 3D scan of your face, and use it to create a breathtaking avatar or visual representation of yourself for social media. What other possibilities does this hold for the future? Augmented Reality surely can't be that far behind...
3 The Big Day
The annual event for Apple that announces the latest and greatest technological advances is kind of the Comic Con for smartphone lovers, and this year is shaping up to be a big one with the rumors surrounding the iPhone 8 announcement. Taking place in September, (just a couple weeks from now), the event should prove to be a massive one. With AR being a key feature that the company has been striving to achieve for years, this might finally prove to be the year the tech community is introduced to a whole new level of gaming and interacting with the world around us. Plus, be sure to check out new photo capabilities, a strong hardware display and possibly a brand new and shocking development at Apple, but again this is all rumor.
2 Size Matters
The introduction of the flexible plastic OLED display screen would also increase the size of the display phone. Rumors are suggesting that the new iPhone 8 would feature a screen with a 5.8-inch display, making it one of the larger phones the company has unveiled. This larger display would be curved, and would allow for a better media viewing. Up for speculation, however, is the weight of the device. Sometimes bigger isn't always better in the tech world, so it'll be interesting to see how a 5.8-inch display would look and play out with the systems of the iPhone 8 device. Hopefully, the size can match up to the hype for this new system. In any event, we'll know the specifics in a few weeks when Apple debuts it.
1 Is This The Real Life? Is This Just Fantasy?
Fantasy may start blending into the real world if the rumors around the iPhone 8 are true. A long standing ambition for Apple, the AR features of the iPhone 8, including AR capabilities in the camera app and more AR-Friendly features are expected to be announced when the iPhone 8 is announced in a few weeks. AR could lead to much more interactive gaming, as well as a more connected social media experience, a faster than ever information search engine that brings the information to you using your camera and a more personal media viewing experience. With the recent announcement of an AR style Walking Dead game similar to Pokémon GO, this rumor has the potential to make the iPhone 8 one of the biggest selling devices this holiday season.