iPhone 5 to Get Aluminum Backing, Redesigned Antenna?

MacRumors · 02:29 AM

Mockup design of iPhone 5 with Aluminum backing

GadgetsDNA points to a Economic Daily News report (translated by Macotakara) about the upcoming iPhone 5. According to a Chinese source, Apple will be abandoning the glass backing of the iPhone 4 and moving back to an aluminum casing. Apple's first iPhone shipped with an aluminum back casing. From the translation:

Quote:

Decision to design similar to iPod touch instead of using glass is supposed that Apple seems to stop problems which are told widely damages from scratching, difficulties of painting white and weight of glass.

The antenna will also be redesigned which means Apple will also be abandoning the current external iPhone 4 antenna design. The iPhone 4 antenna was the source of a major controversy over signal loss and attenuation when it was held in a certain way. The iPhone 5 is also said to have the new Apple A5 processor and will likely be announced in June/July.

While Economic Daily News itself has been a bit of mixed source for early Apple rumors with previous claims that didn't pan out, the Chinese supply chain seems to be the weakest link in Apple's secrecy.

Article Link: iPhone 5 to Get Aluminum Backing, Redesigned Antenna?

iSamurai · Mar 7, 2011, 02:26 AM

so the sandwich-like front and back glass panels will be gone... really good looking and I think it'll remain an iconic design (regardless of the antenna-gate). I love my iPhone 4 and I've even gone to replace the black backing with a white one

siurpeeman · Mar 7, 2011, 02:26 AM

i'm fine with aluminum, but i'm not a fan of the tapered edges on the ipod touch. it makes the volume and power buttons really hard to press.

jon08 · Mar 7, 2011, 02:27 AM

Now this would make it REALLY scratch-prone....

Serelus · Mar 7, 2011, 02:28 AM

this I wouldn't mind.... looks great.

DoFoT9 · Mar 7, 2011, 02:28 AM

oh dear. that is absolutely DISGUSTING that colour. i do like the new physical appearance though

FuFuFu · Mar 7, 2011, 02:29 AM

2 steps back ... can't believe that. iphone 5 better called as iphone 4.0 beta ...

samh004 · Mar 7, 2011, 02:32 AM

The mock-up looks like a badly designed 3GS. Don’t have an iPhone 4 myself, but would prefer it over that mockup

vanzantapple · Mar 7, 2011, 02:32 AM

Looks Great!

That is what I wanted the iPod Touch 4 to look like.

Full of Win · Mar 7, 2011, 02:34 AM

The 1st generation iPhone was and still is a work of art.

levitynyc · Mar 7, 2011, 02:34 AM

Recessed headphone jack.

adrian.oconnor · Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM

Don't judge the appearance based on fake mock-ups, but it's a credible rumour. I agree with the poster above who says the iPhone 4 design is iconic -- if they go back to the tapered back it will be doubly so. In years to come, iPhone 4 will be the one that appears in coffee table design books.

Ice-Cube · Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM

An aluminium Product (RED) version would be orgasmic.

macduke · Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM

I really like the aluminum back. I loved the look on my original iPhone (which is still the best back-casing I've had on any iPhone, and I've had them all), I love the look on my iPad, and I love the look on my 2011 MBP.

My only issue with the original iPhone was the black band at the bottom. If Apple could run the wireless through the Apple logo, and then maybe through the power button, or headphone jack, or dock connector (kind of like how they do that with the superdrive slot on the unibodies), then I'd be game.

While I think the iPhone 4 looks great, it's edges are too sharp, and I feel like it is more prone to breaking than any iPhone I've had before. I got my wife a 4th gen iPod Touch the other day, and man, if I could get that as an iPhone but with the non-glossy aluminum back and slightly more rounded corners then I'd be so happy! If they could bring the edges of the device in further so that the screen goes all the way to the edge, then that would be even better!

MattInOz · Mar 7, 2011, 02:36 AM

It looks like someone saw a new iPad photo with no reference scale and thought it was an iPhone.

Just can't see it... Sorry.

LoganT · Mar 7, 2011, 02:36 AM

Wasn't there a problem with the signal getting through the aluminum and that's why they changed it?

iPave · Mar 7, 2011, 02:38 AM

iPhone 4 is sexier. But on the other hand, this one is probably way more durable. iPhone 4s (how should it be written in plural?) have even exploded because of cold.

mKizzo · Mar 7, 2011, 02:38 AM

Booooo. I seem to remember getting tons of scratches really easily on my 1st gen iPhone....

aiqw9182 · Mar 7, 2011, 02:39 AM

Makes sense that they make it look like the iPad 2 with a black and white glass option to boot.

mikeapple · Mar 7, 2011, 02:41 AM

here comes all the iPad 2 look alike mods for iPhone 5... like this has never happened before.

kutsushita · Mar 7, 2011, 02:41 AM

Bad mockup is bad. So no front camera on the iPhone 5? Riiiiight.

ugokutana · Mar 7, 2011, 02:44 AM

The original article in Economic Daily News said nothing about the design of iPhone 5.

PBF · Mar 7, 2011, 02:45 AM

So is iPhone 5 the new mini iPad 2? LOL

ParishYoung · Mar 7, 2011, 02:45 AM

Can't imagine Apple removiving the flash from the rear camera

No front facing camera

Silent switch slides "up and down", all previous versions have been "front to back"

Altough this design may work for the cheaper iPhone Nano that has been rumoured.

aiqw9182 · Mar 7, 2011, 02:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeapple

here comes all the iPad 2 look alike mods for iPhone 5... like this has never happened before.

I would actually love an iPhone that looked like that. The original iPad design was much better than the current iPad 2 in my opinion.

Mar 7, 2011, 02:26 AM	#2
iSamurai macrumors 6502a Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: ɹǝpun uʍop 'ǝuɐqsıɹq	so the sandwich-like front and back glass panels will be gone... really good looking and I think it'll remain an iconic design (regardless of the antenna-gate). I love my iPhone 4 and I've even gone to replace the black backing with a white one __________________ 
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:26 AM	#3
siurpeeman macrumors 603 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: the OC	i'm fine with aluminum, but i'm not a fan of the tapered edges on the ipod touch. it makes the volume and power buttons really hard to press. __________________ grr...argh...
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:27 AM	#4
jon08 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Nov 2008	Now this would make it REALLY scratch-prone.... __________________  15.4" MacBook Pro (late 2011), 2.2 Ghz Intel Core i7, Crucial 8GB RAM, Crucial M4 512GB SSD, AMD Radeon 6750M   iPhone 5 16 GB 
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:28 AM	#6
DoFoT9 macrumors P6 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: CWB, Hong Kong	oh dear. that is absolutely DISGUSTING that colour. i do like the new physical appearance though __________________ Official MacRumors IRC @ irc.krono.net #macrumors (Or http://kewlirc.net:9090/) 2012 2.5GHz Mac Mini Dual - 16GB RAM Win8 PC - i5-3570k - 16GB RAM - SSD
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:32 AM	#8
samh004 macrumors 68020 Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Australia	The mock-up looks like a badly designed 3GS. Don’t have an iPhone 4 myself, but would prefer it over that mockup __________________ Website
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:28 AM	#5
Serelus macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2009	this I wouldn't mind.... looks great.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:29 AM	#7
FuFuFu macrumors member Join Date: Feb 2011	2 steps back ... can't believe that. iphone 5 better called as iphone 4.0 beta ...
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:32 AM	#9
vanzantapple macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: USA	Looks Great! That is what I wanted the iPod Touch 4 to look like.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:34 AM	#10
Full of Win Banned Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Ask Apple	The 1st generation iPhone was and still is a work of art.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:34 AM	#11
levitynyc macrumors 6502a Join Date: Aug 2006	Recessed headphone jack.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM	#12
adrian.oconnor macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Nottingham, England	Don't judge the appearance based on fake mock-ups, but it's a credible rumour. I agree with the poster above who says the iPhone 4 design is iconic -- if they go back to the tapered back it will be doubly so. In years to come, iPhone 4 will be the one that appears in coffee table design books.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM	#13
Ice-Cube macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Somewhere over the rainbow	An aluminium Product (RED) version would be orgasmic. __________________ sent from my iPhone.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:35 AM	#14
macduke macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Columbia, MO	I really like the aluminum back. I loved the look on my original iPhone (which is still the best back-casing I've had on any iPhone, and I've had them all), I love the look on my iPad, and I love the look on my 2011 MBP. My only issue with the original iPhone was the black band at the bottom. If Apple could run the wireless through the Apple logo, and then maybe through the power button, or headphone jack, or dock connector (kind of like how they do that with the superdrive slot on the unibodies), then I'd be game. While I think the iPhone 4 looks great, it's edges are too sharp, and I feel like it is more prone to breaking than any iPhone I've had before. I got my wife a 4th gen iPod Touch the other day, and man, if I could get that as an iPhone but with the non-glossy aluminum back and slightly more rounded corners then I'd be so happy! If they could bring the edges of the device in further so that the screen goes all the way to the edge, then that would be even better! __________________ MacBook Pro R-Type / Quad 2.6GHz Core i7 / 2880×1800 / 16GB / 512GB SSD Canon 7D w/grip / 24-105L / 100-400L / Pro9000 MkII Printer 64GB iPhone 5 / 32GB iPad 2 / 8GB iPhone
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:36 AM	#15
MattInOz macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Sydney	It looks like someone saw a new iPad photo with no reference scale and thought it was an iPhone. Just can't see it... Sorry. __________________ There is no such thing as "Collective Wisdom" [13" MacBookPro 2.7Ghz, 27"Al iMac i7, Black MacBook 13", iPhone 4, iPad]
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:36 AM	#16
LoganT macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jan 2007	Wasn't there a problem with the signal getting through the aluminum and that's why they changed it?
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:38 AM	#17
iPave macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Tampere, Finland	iPhone 4 is sexier. But on the other hand, this one is probably way more durable. iPhone 4s (how should it be written in plural?) have even exploded because of cold. __________________ 15'' MacBook Pro 2.66GHz, 4GB, 9400M+9600GT 32GB iPhone 4
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:38 AM	#18
mKizzo macrumors member Join Date: Oct 2008	Booooo. I seem to remember getting tons of scratches really easily on my 1st gen iPhone.... __________________ iMac 24" 2.8 Extreme \| 2x iPhone 8Gb \| iPhone4 32Gb \| iPad Wifi 32Gb \| TV2 \| iPad2 Wifi 32Gb (white) \| MBP 15" 2.4i7 8Gb Ram 256SSD
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:39 AM	#19
aiqw9182 Banned Join Date: Apr 2010	Makes sense that they make it look like the iPad 2 with a black and white glass option to boot.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:41 AM	#20
mikeapple macrumors member Join Date: Apr 2010	here comes all the iPad 2 look alike mods for iPhone 5... like this has never happened before.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:41 AM	#21
kutsushita macrumors regular Join Date: May 2010 Location: houston	Bad mockup is bad. So no front camera on the iPhone 5? Riiiiight. __________________ \| Macbook 2.26 250GB \| Macbook Pro 2.40 250GB \| iPad 3G 16GB \| White iPhone 4 16GB (mine!) \| 5G iPod Nano 8GB \| 2xATV2 \| Black iPhone 4 16GB (girl's)\|
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:44 AM	#22
ugokutana macrumors member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Tokyo, Japan	?????????????? The original article in Economic Daily News said nothing about the design of iPhone 5.
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:45 AM	#23
PBF macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: NYC	So is iPhone 5 the new mini iPad 2? LOL
	0

Mar 7, 2011, 02:45 AM	#24
ParishYoung macrumors 6502 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Bristol, South West UK	Can't imagine Apple removiving the flash from the rear camera No front facing camera Silent switch slides "up and down", all previous versions have been "front to back" Altough this design may work for the cheaper iPhone Nano that has been rumoured. __________________ White iPad 2 - 32Gb Wifi iPad 32Gb Wifi + 3G iPhone 4 32Gb MacBook Pro 15" 2009 Unibody AppleTV 160Gb AirPort Extreme GameCentre: PHILLYOUNG
	0

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