iPhone 7 Rumor Round-Up: Here’s What We Expect from the Next iPhone

Now that it’s 2016, it’s time to look ahead at the new gadgets we expect to be released. At the top of that list? Well, the iPhone 7 of course!

There are plenty of rumors floating around about what we should expect to see in the new iPhone 7 and what will remain the same from the previous generation, the iPhone 6s. Here are some of the more likely improvements we should expect to see.

Design

Generally, Apple offers big updates to its iPhone lineup every two years, with the ‘s’ versions tending to be a little more incremental. Considering this is not an ‘s’ release, and since the 6s was released in 2015, we’re expecting to see some major design changes to the iPhone.

Perhaps the single rumor that has generated the most buzz of late is the rumor that Apple will be removing the headphone jack from the iPhone for the release of the new device. While at first glance this rumors seems a little ridiculous, it’s actually not as out there as some might suggest.

The headphone jack is one of the only things standing in the way of Apple being able to develop a thinner phone, and as such it makes sense to replace it with a newer technology. Not only that, but using the Lightning connector, or something like USB-C, both powered connectors, users will be able to experience a better audio quality through things like power amplifiers that will be powered by the Lightning connection, or the USB-C connection.

Image Credit: Sahanan Yogarasa

The 3.5mm jack is somewhat outdated, and while it will certainly be a pain for it to be replaced, it’s well past time that it is. In fact, it might not be as much of a pain as some think it will, with it being certain that Apple will ship Lightning or USB-C headphones with the iPhone 7. Not only that, but adapters will surely hit the market, so users will still be able to use their older headphones.

Of course, there are also rumors that Apple will be offering no headphone jack at all, forcing users to go with Bluetooth headphones, however I personally don’t think this will happen, and if it does I think it will have been a mistake for Apple.

It’s important to note that while Apple has been releasing two phones every year, with one being the standard phone and the other being more of a phablet, it’s likely that this year we will see a third release.

This phone is expected to be an updated version of the iPhone 5c, a cheaper iPhone aimed at those who still want an iPhone but might not be able to afford a standard iPhone. This phone will also be smaller, being closer in size to 4.7-inches.

Display

Along with a redesign of the phone chassis, it’s likely that we’ll see the phone get a better display resolution. When the company released the Retina Display, it was very much one of the best phone displays out there, however since then much sharper displays have come along, and Apple has had to play catch up, largely undermining its marketing campaign for the Retina Display, which was billed as being “as sharp as the eye can see.” Hopefully Apple will bring the iPhone 7 display to a pixel density of 401 pixels per inch, a density that was previously only available on the 6 Plus and 6s Plus.

Some suggest the iPhone 7 will also get an edge-to-edge display, as seen in many iPhone concept designs.

Storage And RAM

At this point, we should expect 16GB to be phased out as the lowest storage option. 16GB is an outdated amount of storage, and it’s well past time for Apple to set up its game for storage. Sure, many are turning to cloud-based storage, but we’re not completely there yet, instead being in more of an in-between phase between all-cloud storage and all-onboard storage. We should expect to see at least 32GB as the lowest storage option.

USB-C

There are rumors around suggesting that Apple may in fact replace the Lightning connector with USB-C, especially considering the fact that it adopted the USB-C connector for the MacBook. This, however, is highly unlikely. Doing this would be great for users, especially considering the fact that USB-C, and the USB 3.1 standard that the USB-C connector generally uses, is far superior to Lightning.

It offers a higher data speed and can handle more power. Considering Apple says that it created the Lightning connector to offer the best connector on the market, Apple has two choices: adopt USB-C or create something better.

Learn More: ‘iPhone 5e’ May Be the Name of Apple’s New 4-inch Phone 

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]