iPhone 13 leak reveals this highly anticipated design update

(Image credit: EverythingApplePro)

Apple just announced an October 13 launch event where we expect the iPhone 12 to be the headline. We have a pretty clear picture of the four models Apple should reveal next week, but the rumor mill must churn on and some leakers are already turning to the iPhone 13.

Prolific and often reliable leaker @UniverseIce weighed in with an alleged design change arriving on the iPhone 13, that is, a reduction in the size of the display notch.

Rumors of the notch slimming down considerably on the iPhone 12 were rampant in the spring, but reliable leaker Jon Prosser killed these rumors in late August with an alleged video of a pre-production iPhone 12 Max that included a virtually unchanged notch from the iPhone 11. 

Given the considerable design change expected on the iPhone 12, we assumed the iPhone 13 would stick pretty close to that design as well. That said, a shift in the size of the notch seems within reason. 

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While Ice Universe appears to share my own level of drawing skill, a sketch they posted nonetheless conveys the idea successfully. There's no question that many would like to see the notch on the display disappear entirely but it's very plausible that the technology to do that won't get here in time for the iPhone 13.

One new feature we can virtually guarantee for the iPhone 13 Pros after next week will be the inclusion of 120Hz displays if Apple does indeed fail to deliver them on the iPhone 12 Pros. The leaks pointed to it being a near-miss this time and not something Apple will want to repeat considering Samsung has a two-year lead on high refresh rate smartphones. 

Naturally, take all of this with a grain of salt as the iPhone 13 is one year away and , as we saw with the iPhone 12 development cycle, there's plenty that can happen between now and then.

Sean Riley

Sean Riley has been covering tech professionally for over a decade now. Most of that time was as a freelancer covering varied topics including phones, wearables, tablets, smart home devices, laptops, AR, VR, mobile payments, fintech, and more.  Sean is the resident mobile expert at Laptop Mag, specializing in phones and wearables, you'll find plenty of news, reviews, how-to, and opinion pieces on these subjects from him here. But Laptop Mag has also proven a perfect fit for that broad range of interests with reviews and news on the latest laptops, VR games, and computer accessories along with coverage on everything from NFTs to cybersecurity and more.