We are less than a week away from the anticipated launch of the iPhone 13 at Apple's September 14 streaming event but the world of tech rumors is already moving on to what's next.
Enter today's iPhone 14 renders from Front Page Tech, the site run by leaker Jon Prosser, which showed off an alleged redesign for the 2022 iPhone that will do away with the notch and the camera bump along with a few other notable upgrades (via MacRumors).
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It's important to acknowledge that any or all of what Prosser shares could be inaccurate. His leaks are generally accurate, but he is far from infallible.
The move to a hole-punch camera from the notch at the top of the iPhone 14 display would be the biggest news if true. Current rumors suggest the iPhone 13 will reduce the size of the notch, but even the most ardent Apple fans have been calling for the elimination of the notch since it first appeared on the iPhone X.
This isn't the first time that we've heard this; it's a rumor that has circulated just about every year. However, it has garnered more credible support over the last year with analyst Ming-Chi Kuo initially indicating that the notch would be gone by 2023, a prediction he later amended to 2022. The claim is that Face ID will still be supported and that the tech is behind the screen, but Prosser doesn't address whether Touch ID is making a comeback as we have seen in previous rumors.
I'm more excited by the alleged reduction of the camera bumps on the back of the iPhone 14. The current phone design trend with enormous lenses protruding from the back is neither aesthetically pleasing nor functional. The layout of the cameras, flash, and LiDAR sensor all remain the same but simply flush with the back of the phone. There doesn't appear to be any secret sauce to this solution; Prosser claims the iPhone 14 is simply thick enough to eliminate the need for a camera bump.
That implies that the phone could have a massive battery inside, which after the questionable battery life on the iPhone 12, would be excellent news. However, it's important to note that Prosser doesn't claim to have any knowledge of the internal features of the phone. The iPhone 13 may tell us more if it fails to live up to Apple's formerly excellent battery life, then it would stand to reason that Apple would find a solution by next year.
Returning to the surface of the phone, the back is naturally made of glass as per usual and features a glossy finish. Prosser notes that the Apple logo is actually located underneath the glass layer on this design, which distinguishes it from the current design with the logo printed on the glass. The phone colors in the renders are purely speculative with the exception of the rose gold, however, though even that color option is not finalized at this time, according to Prosser's sources.
The sides of the phone lean even harder into the iPhone 4 retro design with the return of the round volume buttons below the mute switch and the glass overlaying the antenna bands. A material upgrade to the edges of the phone is a switch to titanium from steel on the current Pro models, which should help offset some of the weight increase we would anticipate from the thicker design.
We are eagerly anticipating the release of the iPhone 13, but these renders are certainly enticing if you aren't in a huge hurry to upgrade this year.
