'iPhone Ultra' Concept Envisions Apple's Rumored Future Top-Tier Smartphone

[phenste]

Can anyone tell me how Samsung manages to include a 200 MP camera, periscope lens and whatnot without a camera bump on their Galaxy line up?

edit: nvm it actually does have slightly raised lenses but not this huge square thing like an iPhone

two reasons:

1) Apple wants their phones to be a statement, and whether you think it’s ugly as hell or not (I’m personally ambivalent), that bump makes the phone immediately recognizable.

2 [more importantly…]) Samsung’s cameras are actual garbage seemingly made by fools who know nothing about good cameras (e.g. packing 200MP means nothing if the sensor is relatively horrendously small, which it inevitably will be on any remotely pocketable device)

 

[Crowbot]

on a serious note: I’ve had a gut feeling for years that Apple will eventually go portless with iPhone. how? I don’t know. I’m neither an industrial designer nor (more pertinent to your genuine concern) an engineer. but they’ll figure it out in some way, shape, or form. maybe I’m wrong, because this concept is from Ive’s days and post-Ive days have been about adding back wired connectivity, but they’ve spoken constantly about a wireless future (and to that end, their greatest manifestation of that—a laptop with two f—king ports—ended up being one of the worst products in post-NeXT Apple history and one that spawned one the worst years-long PR embarrassments in the history of MacBooks [see: butterfly keyboard]).

As a service technician (retired) my issue is that any device like an iPhone needs a hardwired port for diagnostics and service. If the radios go bad on a portless device it is essentially unrepairable without disassembly, which is costly. I don't see any benefit to a portless design other than it looks nicer not to have a hole in the case.

 

[magicschoolbus]

I am not paying more for a phone unless it has something similar to Samsung DEX - where you plug your iPhone into a monitor and Bam - you're running full blown Mac OSX. There is no reason why the processors could not do this.

 

[GumaRodak]

I do hope that apple will not follow the path of android phones to have thousands of models…each year

 

[D-ConYT]

it translates to iphone surprisingly well, but i still have mixed feelings. it does it better than the watch ultra though

 

[phenste]

As a service technician (retired) my issue is that any device like an iPhone needs a hardwired port for diagnostics and service. If the radios go bad on a portless device it is essentially unrpairable without disassembly, which is costly. I don't see any benefit to a portless design other than it looks nicer not to have a hole in the case.

all fair points—I do think cosmetics are a big reason why Apple would go portless, but you’re clearly in a position to foresee the issues with such a design. I could spitball for days on how they would have some kind of diagnostics port (under removable side buttons, under-display…lmao, behind the camera somehow? 😂 jk on the last one) but I’m simply not qualified to do so.

I’ll throw in my own concern for good measure: the fact that I still do full backups to my computer. doing that wirelessly is a big 😵‍💫 of an idea to me. unless they can incorporate data transfer into MagSafe…even that, I don’t think, could ever match the power of a simple port.

 

[now i see it]

3D models based on imagination are just that. This render is just doodling based on wishes.

 

[SevLucas]

I'll take one in mini form please.

 

[Bobcat32]

Dude!!!!!!!! Omg I want this I need this! Reincarnated 3G! Lighter materials more battery flush camera! Dedicated camera button!

 

[phenste]

If it isn't obvious - the primary reason they're doing this is to eventually use the Ultra model moniker for the foldable iPhone

this seems eerily spot on…are you a time-traveller? 🧐😆

 

[nvmls]

The Pro is already a massive brick, imagine something bulkier... hard pass.

 

[phenste]

It's the rugged version. Should give us 1 week of solid battery life on a single charge 0-100% 🔋 💪

1 week?

girl…you’re on iOS 16, right?

we’ll see a Polishing Cloth in Midnight before then. 🤣

 

[iPaulie81]

In have a feeling that an iPhone 15 Ultra will come at the expense of the Pro models being intentionally Nerfed. Ultra will of course come at an ever higher price point whilst the Pro gets modest changes at the same price point. Sometimes I wonder how much of Apples product development is based on what the customer is looking for vs just finding ways to milk us even harder

 

[Rogifan]

Designer? He just took the Apple Watch ultra and made it more big… How unimaginative…
Wooh, it has the name ultra in it, that’s why the iphone ultra must look the same

It reminds me of the Apple TV mockups that had chamfered edges like an iPhone 5.

 

[Gengar]

Tacky, tbh.

 

[Wando64]

Can anyone tell me how Samsung manages to include a 200 MP camera, periscope lens and whatnot without a camera bump on their Galaxy line up?

edit: nvm it actually does have slightly raised lenses but not this huge square thing like an iPhone

Because it is a periscope lens.

Periscope Lens: What is it? And When Will Apple Use One in iPhone?

At least one of the iPhone models that's coming in 2023 will feature a "periscope" lens, according to information shared by Apple analyst...

www.macrumors.com

 

[kingalien]

The Ultra design needs to do away with the camera bump.

 

[gk_brown]

It looks sporty and kinda fat. Looks like the old colorful iPhone 5C, it doesn't look premium.

It looks sporty AND kinda fat? How does that work?

 

[gk_brown]

The Ultra design needs to do away with the camera bump.

No way - I love the Ultra design.

 

[Coldsmoke55]

Apple has reportedly considered releasing a new top-of-the-line iPhone alongside future Pro and Pro Max models, tentatively referred to as "iPhone Ultra," and one designer has taken it upon himself to envision what such a device could potentially look like.

German industrial designer Jonas Daehnert came up with this impressive-looking concept (pictured) by marrying design elements of the Apple Watch Ultra with a smaller imagined iPhone Pro model, which he describes as "12mm+ thick – the Ultra concept."

Like Apple's more rugged Apple Watch, Daehnert's titanium iPhone chassis features rounded edges with a flat upper rim that sits flush with the display. Elsewhere, there are protruding Side and Volume Up/Down buttons reminiscent of the watch's crown guard. The extra thickness of the chassis presumes a larger internal battery.

Other aspects of the Ultra design language that have been adopted for Daehnert's concept include a ruggedized Ring/Silent switch, a programmable Action button on the lower-left side, and a USB-C port located on the bottom with identical "International Orange" accent, sat in between expanded speaker grilles.

"I have no idea about all the leaks," Daehnert admitted when sharing the concept on Twitter. "It was just an exercise to see if it's possible to adapt the Watch Ultra design language."

Apple has discussed selling a new top-of-the-line iPhone alongside the Pro and Pro Max models in 2024 at the earliest, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this timeframe, the device would be part of the iPhone 16 lineup or later.

Gurman previously said there was "potential" for an iPhone 15 Ultra that would replace the iPhone 15 Pro Max this year, but he has since revised that prediction, suggesting Apple might release an even higher-end "Ultra" model above both Pro variants by next year at the earliest.

Gurman speculated that the device could feature additional camera improvements, a faster chip, a larger display, and perhaps a portless design without Lightning or USB-C. He also said the device would be "pricier" than the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which starts at $1,099.

Separately, rumors suggest that iPhone 15 Pro models could feature thinner, curved bezels in comparison to the iPhone 14 Pro models, producing an Apple Watch-like appearance. Rather than stainless steel, the iPhone 15 Pro models are also rumored to use a titanium frame, like the Apple Watch Ultra. Titanium is lighter and more durable than stainless steel. It is, however, also more expensive.

Article Link: 'iPhone Ultra' Concept Envisions Apple's Rumored Future Top-Tier Smartphone

Great....just what we need a MORE expensive and thicker iPhone. I hope Apple doesn't go this route.
I think Apple has milked the slab phone long enough and needs to again "Think Different".
Changing colors and making the camera bump even larger each year just won't cut it any longer.
As much as I hate to say it, I am beginning to consider an Android alternative.

 

[Pooneil]

"Build it and they will come." iPhones always sell faster than Apple can make them with a few exceptions.

 

[ChromeAce]

It’s gonna need a digital crown.

 

[koil]

I unironically love this actually! If they make a small phone with this design, with a good battery, and as sturdy as it appears it would be, then I will 100% be a customer despite buying a 14 Pro last year.

 

[MrMojo1]

"I have no idea about all the leaks," Daehnert admitted when sharing the concept on Twitter. "It was just an exercise to see if it's possible to adapt the Watch Ultra design language."

It’s a mock artist’s rendering of what the newer model may look like so people should take it lightly.
The color used is nice, like a light champagne gold.

 

[fuchsdh]

Very well done render. I don’t think this looks anywhere near as premium or upscale as the current Pro models though for a model that’s supposed to be even more premium.

I think in matching the Ultra, the render makes sense as a less-sleek but more sturdy-looking device. I don't think "premium looking" is going to be exactly how Apple aims at it (because it's going to be pretty hard to do that just with materials.) Just aesthetics, I'm sure it'd be wayyy too big and ungainly for me, a small iPhone fan, but I do like the look since it harkens back to those white plastic/aluminum accents G5 era of Apple design, just more refined.

But this of course assumes that they're going to market the highest-end phone as "look at all this stuff you can do with it and where you can take it and how much battery you'll still have" like the Ultra, and not some other appeal. Given it's all just rumors and the needs of a rugged watch are different than a phone, who knows.