iPhone 6 Features, Facts, Leaks and Rumors - Everything We Know So Far
With less than a month remaining until September – the month during which Apple usually launches their yearly iPhone release – speculation and buzz surrounding the much-anticipated iPhone 6 are spreading across the internet like wildfire. While much of the recent news has been mostly rumor, some of it has been confirmed as fact or is likely to be true.
The iPhone 6 will be competing primarily with the Samsung Galaxy S5, HTC One M8, and LG G3 for now, but with rumors indicating that Samsung could be releasing the Galaxy Alpha at some point within the next year, Apple will have substantial competition in the smartphone market in 2014-2015. We've already covered the fact that the iPad's once booming sales are now slowly declining, so the upcoming iPhone's success is even more important for Apple at this time.
Unfortunately, most technology manufacturers like to keep device features secret until the official debut, to build anticipation and demand. Luckily, Apple has been willing to provide a small amount of important facts about the latest addition to the world's most famous line of smartphones, and a number of industry insiders in the manufacturing sector have come forward with some very interesting revelations.
To save you the time and hassle of having to scour the endless sea of hype for bits and pieces of information, we've compiled everything you need to know about the iPhone 6 in this thorough overview:
Release Date Information
Although Apple has not yet confirmed a release date, according to a few reliable sources we should be seeing Apple throw a launch event on September 9th to officially debut the product and all of its features, despite earlier rumors stating that the release date would probably come sooner in October. The actual release date (when consumers will be able to buy it) will probably occur the next Friday or the Friday after that.
Most analysts believe the iPhone 6 will probably drop somewhere between the 18th and the 22nd, with Friday the 19th being the most likely release date. Although Apple hasn't open the gates for pre-orders yet, luxury accessory company Brikk has already started taking pre-orders for 24 karat gold and platinum iPhone 6's – an interesting and novel idea to capitalize on the pre-launch pandemonium.
Although we've learned that the 5.5- inch edition of the iPhone 6 will probably become Apple's flagship product, there's a chance that it might be launched after the 4.7 inch version, and may not reach the market until closer to 2015.
Some analysts feel that the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones are being given separate release dates to prevent competition between the two devices, but there are also rumors that the 5.5-inch version has been subject to production delays due to manufacturers having to produce sapphire displays and small enough batteries to accommodate the incredibly thin design of the larger iPhone.
The September release is a yearly thing that Apple does. It seems to be a strategic move to build anticipation throughout the year and then release the new device a couple months before the holiday season shopping sprees kick in. This gives consumers time to learn about the product, see it in stores, add it to their wish lists, and set their money aside to purchase it by the time the Thanksgiving-Christmas period rolls around.
Design and Specs
The iPhone 6 will come in two size variations – 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches, but both will be running A8 processors. Other commonly mentioned aspects of the soon-to-be unveiled design include curved displays, ultra-thin bezels, and highly durable screens. Rumors suggest that the 5.5. version may be the only size variation that will be available in the largest storage size capacity of 128 MB. The sapphire display might also be reserved only for the larger version. Still, conflicting reports state that the display may be made out of an unintroduced material, so we'll have to wait to find out for sure. Other than those basic design details, here are some of the most interesting facts about the upcoming iPhone 6:
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Higher Resolution and Pixel Density
Apple has supposedly been testing out several screen resolution variations, and there are rumors suggesting that the new iPhone will have a resolution of 1704 x 906, which would give the 4.7-inch version a pixel density of 416 pixels per inch (PPI); the 5.5-inch edition would have a PPI of 365.
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As Thin as an iPod Touch
Recent leaks and mockups indicate that the new iPhone will be significantly thinner than its iPhone 5 predecessor, with a thinness that is more comparable to the iPod Touch. For comparison's sake, the current iPhone has a thickness of 7.6 mm, while the new iPhone 6 is expected to have a thickness of 6.1 mm.
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Protruding Camera with Optical Image Stabilization
Rumors also suggest that the larger iPhone 6 may feature a new and improved 13-megapixel protruding camera with Optical Image Stabilization for faster snapshots and higher resolution images. The camera's sensor will allegedly be provided by Sony.
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Super Fast Wi-Fi Chip
Recent reports state that the iPhone 6 will come with an enhanced Wi-Fi chip that supports the new ultra-high speed 802.11ac Wi-Fi connections. The phone will reportedly ship with a modem that supports Category 6 LTE – the fastest version of 4G, capable of reaching speeds up to 300mbps. If this turns out to be true (and it probably will) we could see the iPhone 6 achieving much faster connection speeds than other mobile devices.
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Near-Field Communication (NFC) Chip
The new iPhone will also come equipped with an NFC chip that will facilitate fast and easy mobile payments. According to reports, Apple has already begun to make arrangements with UnionPay in China to use the device for “QuickPass” point-of-sale transactions. Obviously, we expect similar arrangements to be made in the US and global markets.
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Improved TouchID
Along with near field communication capabilities, both models are expected to feature a TouchID fingerprint sensor, a feature that was first introduced in the iPhone 5. The fingerprint sensor may be used in unison with the NFC chip to provide a form of quick identity verification when using the phone to make payments at participating retailers. This year's version of the iPhone's fingerprint sensor is supposed to be more accurate than its predecessor, according to Apple patents publicized earlier this year.
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Beats Headphones Compatibility
With Apple acquiring Beats Audio for $3 billion this year, it was only a matter of time before this brand was incorporated into the iPhone series. A recent report indicates that the iPhone 6 might have a special port for Beats headphones, and that instead of plugging the headphones into the conventional headphone jack, they may interface with the Lightning data/charging port instead.
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2.0 GHz A8 Processor
Although both size variations are expected to come equipped with an impressive quad-core A8 processor, according to some analysts there are clues in the Asian supply chain that suggest Apple may put a more powerful processor in the 5.5-inch version. This would not be surprising, as the A7 processor in the iPad Air is just a little bit faster than the same processor used in the iPad Mini – the Air's processor has a clock speed of 1.39 GHz whereas the Mini has a clockspeed of 1.29 GHz.
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iOS 8 Debut
As usual, the new iPhone will usher in the newest version of Apple's mobile operating system – iOS 8. Highlights of the upcoming iOS 8 include a new QuickType keyboard, greater customization capabilities, a MAC address randomizer for enhanced privacy, the addition of new apps like a standalone iTunes Radio, built-in image recovery features, and much more. To learn more about iOS 8, check out our in-depth overview here.
Mockups and Leaks
Several supposed replicas of the iPhone 6 running modified versions of Android have hit the Asian market much sooner than expected, prompting Apple to ask Chinese police to crack down on the leaks.
A leak of what could be the iPhone 6's front panel appeared on Weibo (often called the Chinese version of Twitter) in April, showing off a considerably thinner bezel. Again, yesterday an additional leak of the front panel was purported to be leaked on Apple.club.tw, according to 9to5Mac. Photos of what could be the backlight panel also surfaced on Weibo earlier this year.
A French website posted pictures of what were allegedly the batteries for the iPhone 6 arranged on a production tray. The configuration of the batteries and the location of their charging ports suggest that the Cupertino-based iPhone maker may have changed that particular form factor on the upcoming iPhone.
Update: Yesterday BusinessInsider posted what could be the first closeup look at a fully assembled iPhone 6.
Although Apple has not yet confirmed the authenticity of these leaks and mockups, there is a good chance that the majority of them are at least partially accurate, and they therefore provide interesting insight into what we might expect to see next month at launch time.
For now, here's a video showing off what could be the closest thing to the iPhone 6 thus far:
