Apple Testing 7-Inch Display for Largest 20th Anniversary iPhone Model

[turbineseaplane]

They weren’t that great - compared to other models. In isolation though they still sold in their millions.

Apple has many products that are more niche than the mini but keep them on sale. Why not a small iPhone in their biggest selling category?

I would just add that for some users (like myself), the #1 consideration on a "mobile device" is the form factor / size / weight.

For me, I want the smallest and lightest iPhone possible, as I use it quite minimally for the essentials.

I'm talking about things like taking pictures, music/podcasts, CarPlay connecting, messaging & calls, quickly doing something on an App, etc. For anything beyond those sorts of things, I use either an iPad or more typically my Mac with a huge screen.

I want the opposite of the "Christopher Nolan IMAX Movie Studio on the go" thing they seem to keep making more of.

 

[Mrbiggestman]

For the most part smartphones, at least in the candybar format, are a pretty mature category these days. What part, precisely, are you looking for them to innovate massively on?

Honestly, anything. Apple just needs to prove that they are capable of innovating and pushing a new idea first into the market.

under display cameras have been around for (at the time of iphone 20 release) 7 years

curved screen phones can be found as early as the galaxy round or as late as the oneplus 13.

much of these 2 features (like main headline features btw) are already in the market. Like for example I own a redmagic 11 pro which has a under display camera and i already know the main disadvantage which is that the UDC is not fully invisible, in fact you can still see the camera outline in some display conditions.

(there is some examples down below some in darker colours, some in brighter coulours)

 

[mysticmanix]

How functional is a screen that is curved around the edges of a device? Especially if you have a case that blocks visibility or even not, what about accidental key presses?

I think this will just be a bigger phone; we're currently 6.9 inch so this isn't that big a leap - around 1.5% for a screen

It's not functional at all. I have an old Samsung Galaxy S10 that was the flagship in 2019 and had curved edges. Great phone, but literally unusable without a case as you keep touching the edges and they do indeed register as inputs.

 

[driekraaien]

Just buy a decent pair of reading glasses, you will easily get a 10 inch view of your normal size iPhone.

 

[Mrbiggestman]

It's not functional at all. I have an old Samsung Galaxy S10 that was the flagship in 2019 and had curved edges. Great phone, but literally unusable without a case as you keep touching the edges and they do indeed register as inputs.

There are some reports that the quad display is an optical illusion with it being slightly curved.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2048717874991419459

 

[kimjongbill]

How functional is a screen that is curved around the edges of a device? Especially if you have a case that blocks visibility or even not, what about accidental key presses?

I think this will just be a bigger phone; we're currently 6.9 inch so this isn't that big a leap - around 1.5% for a screen

I had the S8 with a case on and I never had problems with accidental touches or lack of visibility. It did make the display super fragile though. I’ve never broken a phone screen before or since, but I think I broke the screen four times in two years

 

[seek3r]

Honestly, anything. Apple just needs to prove that they are capable of innovating and pushing a new idea first into the market.

under display cameras have been around for (at the time of iphone 20 release) 7 years

curved screen phones can be found as early as the galaxy round or as late as the oneplus 13.

much of these 2 features (like main headline features btw) are already in the market. Like for example I own a redmagic 11 pro which has a under display camera and i already know the main disadvantage which is that the UDC is not fully invisible, in fact you can still see the camera outline in some display conditions.

(there is some examples down below some in darker colours, some in brighter coulours)

Except Apple is rarely the first into a category, including major features, they usually come later with a more refined version. I would expect that an Apple device with under-screen camera will hide it better than current competitors for example. Their innovations are usually in the extra tweaks needed to go beyond “it’s ok, it works, mostly”. They dont always succeed, but that’s their bread and butter. What you’re expecting from Apple isnt usually their thing.

 

[CarAnalogy]

Sometimes that extra inch makes all the difference. But despite what you've heard, 7 inches is too big!

I can already hardly get my hand around it!

We're talking about iPhones, just to be clear.

 

[Yr Blues]

I had the S8 with a case on and I never had problems with accidental touches or lack of visibility. It did make the display super fragile though. I’ve never broken a phone screen before or since, but I think I broke the screen four times in two years

I'm sure that makes the financial department a little giddy.

 

[ChrisMac47]

The leaker has got this all wrong! In fact the big rumour on the street is that there will be an iPhone with all the specs of the 18pro, and some, but with the form factor and weight of the iPod Touch: 123 x 59 x 6mm and 88 grams heavy.

Can't wait for it!

 

[Ronald Reagan]

Not sure why a 0.06 inch bigger screen is news.

My wife says every inch counts.

 

[p96]

Given how scratched up the rounded edge of my Watch face gets, I don't believe this is a good idea to have without a case. And in a case, what's the point?

 

[Manzzle]

Just make a bigger iphone fold.

 

[The Game 161]

and will feel like the current display model as they reduce bezels and form factor.

 

[Mrbiggestman]

Given how scratched up the rounded edge of my Watch face gets, I don't believe this is a good idea to have without a case. And in a case, what's the point?

The iPhone 20 will be curved but it will be so little that it looks more like an optical illusion that its bezel-less

 

[HazeAndHahmahneez]

Not sure why a 0.06 inch bigger screen is news.

This is MASSIVE news! Pun intended.

I mean surely tho… I felt the difference going from 14 max to 16 max, when it comes to these tiny pixels every tiny spec counts….plus with the bezels practically hidden the screens on these anniversary phones will look like an absolute revelation, on my word…

Plus the increase in size always allows Apple to add that check to their bulletpoint list during the September presentation reveals…

For me, I want the smallest and lightest iPhone possible, as I use it quite minimally for the essentials.

I m curious what phone do you use now?

My guess is iPhone 17 or 16 pro?

 

[macbookj0e]

I would just add that for some users (like myself), the #1 consideration on a "mobile device" is the form factor / size / weight.

For me, I want the smallest and lightest iPhone possible, as I use it quite minimally for the essentials.

I'm talking about things like taking pictures, music/podcasts, CarPlay connecting, messaging & calls, quickly doing something on an App, etc. For anything beyond those sorts of things, I use either an iPad or more typically my Mac with a huge screen.

I want the opposite of the "Christopher Nolan IMAX Movie Studio on the go" thing they seem to keep making more of.

Exactly that, I’m the same type of user and no doubt there’s many more of us…

Maybe Ternus will help us out when he takes the reins!

 

[macbookj0e]

My wife says every inch counts.

She must be right my girlfriend says the same.

 

[Mrbiggestman]

Except Apple is rarely the first into a category, including major features, they usually come later with a more refined version. I would expect that an Apple device with under-screen camera will hide it better than current competitors for example. Their innovations are usually in the extra tweaks needed to go beyond “it’s ok, it works, mostly”. They dont always succeed, but that’s their bread and butter. What you’re expecting from Apple isnt usually their thing.

That expectation is exactly what's going to kill them when they eventually launch the iPhone 20 series. If its another specsheet upgrade and a few big features that have already seen in the past, it won't embody what they've done in the past 20 years, it will just more reflect how Apple on how has become more sanitised and people will just lap it up because 'new iPhone'.

If I was new to tech, I would be excited and all jolly about the iPhone 20, but knowing what I know on what is on the other side of the walled garden, it will be more short term dopamine boost than an actual long term interest into iPhone and becoming a customer.

 

[M5RahuL]

Somewhere in the near future...

 

[CarAnalogy]

I would just add that for some users (like myself), the #1 consideration on a "mobile device" is the form factor / size / weight.

For me, I want the smallest and lightest iPhone possible, as I use it quite minimally for the essentials.

I'm talking about things like taking pictures, music/podcasts, CarPlay connecting, messaging & calls, quickly doing something on an App, etc. For anything beyond those sorts of things, I use either an iPad or more typically my Mac with a huge screen.

I want the opposite of the "Christopher Nolan IMAX Movie Studio on the go" thing they seem to keep making more of.

FWIW I debated a lot whether to go with regular Pro or Pro Max when I got the 17 series.

Despite my earlier jokes, I do think the regular Pro is just about the perfect size (still a little heavy) for everyday use.

But, if you're not actually moving it around a lot, that bigger screen does come in handy. As does the bigger battery.

Recently I helped someone set up a base 17 and that really seems like the absolute perfect size and weight.

I get the people who want a mini, but the regular 17 is already so light and fits the hand so well, even without larger hands, and it's already kind of a small display in terms of readability.

I do get what you're saying though. It's a phone, there's got a be a limit, otherwise just get an iPad or a TV.

I honestly think Apple has a really solid lineup now with something for everyone in terms of size and weight.

Once one goes pro cameras though, it's hard to go back.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Recently I helped someone set up a base 17 and that really seems like the absolute perfect size and weight.

Couldn't disagree more.

Too tall, too heavy and (crucially) too wide for me.

There's room in the lineup for more diversity than we currently have.

It's so frustrating they won't just make a Mini every 3 years and give us "something".

 

[johnsawyercjs]

This render has made it's appearance since like 2014 lol

Goes back further than that, to 1855's first Paris Exposition

 

[johnsawyercjs]

There are some reports that the quad display is an optical illusion with it being slightly curved.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2048717874991419459

My guess is that it won't have the thin black display bezel shown in that render, so that the display area will be visible all the way down to the metal band.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

under display cameras have been around for (at the time of iphone 20 release) 7 years

curved screen phones can be found as early as the galaxy round or as late as the oneplus 13.

From what I've read, the quality of the images produced by nearly all of today's under-display cameras isn't all that great, at least compared to a camera that's not under the display. Sure curved displays were first introduced years ago, but many or most people find them to be problematic, largely because for some reason the manufacturers put touch-sensitive controls onto the display sides, so they register unintended presses.

Apple is presumed to fix these issues in their upcoming iPhones, and sure these improvements can be seen as mere spec upgrades for these features, but it's not nothing, though you're right that these won't represent the level of innovation that Apple might claim they are.