This Could Be What Apple's iPhone 5 Looks Like

[WestonHarvey1]

So we either get more iOS screen resolution fragmentation for developers, or a not-quite-as-Retina Retina display.

How iOS devices behave when laying flat on a table seems to be the most variable of things. Apple has no problems going with flat and stable, curved and wobbly, and back again.

Tapered isn't totally out of the question, especially given the preference for that orientation on the iPhone - after all, orientation lock only works for that one orientation on the iPhone.

 

[kdarling]

One question though, Why in all the mock ups is the home button oblong? I think that the home buttons look in the mockup is horrible, if it were round as usual it would look amazing!

In some predictions, the home button is oblong because it is also a gesture pad.

 

[MonkeySee....]

I really don't like the tapered back. Fine, if it's only ever used in portrait mode, but for a device which is often used in landscape orientation it'd just look and feel wrong, thicker on one side and wouldn't lay flat on a table. Ick.

The larger screen is nice, but I'd be worried about accidental gestures.

Any idea what the wider Home button is for? It'd be great if you could swipe left and right to switch between apps, far quicker and easier than the existing app switcher.

I agree with this. The phone would be top heavy and not balanced.

 

[meesebyte]

I hope Apple loses their obsession with "Thinner & Lighter" on their phones. If it gets too light it'll just feel cheap...

They never will lose this obsession. Have you never used the MacBook Air or iPhone 4? More solid yet slimmer and sleeker than previous models in both cases. If that evidence isn't enough, do you seriously think Apple would ever make a product "cheap"-feeling? Apple products are über-solid by today's standards, and they only continue to increase in infrastructural quality.

 

[zstern702]

The iPhone 4 is like carrying a brick in your pocket. It could stand to lose some weight.

easy fix for that is man up!

what ever apple is doing with the new iphone its going to sell.. they broke a 4 year cycle becasue they needed the extra time. i will only buy it as long as they release a 64gb version.. im tired of having to check and uncheck songs that i want to have on my 32gb. i truley want to be able to carry my full music collection plus photos and videos with no comprimise..

 

[sclawis300]

I believe the Home button will stay round. It's not hard to hit, it doesn't need a change. I believe the oval opening is indeed to allow you to swipe across it to switch apps. Swiping will only work when the device is awake, it will do nothing while asleep due to the possibility of, if you'll pardon the expression, butt swiping.

wouldn't the proximity sensor prevent this? I would like to be able to wake my phone without clicking something. Not a huge issue but the only problem I have had with my iPhone 4 is the home button.

 

[rainmanbk]

To echo all the others that have mentioned these few points...

- Area above screen is too short. The face of the iPhone is all about proportions. You can't have the bottom be larger than the top. It's basic design...

- The screen will not be that close to the edge. Yes there are rumors about edge to edge screens but they are rumors, and also they are stupid when considered in a usability sense. Holding an iPhone casually, you will always hit the edges with either your thumb or the meaty pad beneath your thumb. I do this all the time on my iPhone 4 holding it with one hand when stretching my thumb up across the screen to hit a control on the right near the status bar. Less of that safe space will just cause this even more, creating a very frustrating experience. Plus, it looks worse when considering proportions. The less on the sides, the more the top and bottom jump out at you.

As for the back of the device, that's really anyone's guess. I'd say the more 'iPod Touch-ey' this looks, the less likely it'll happen, but that's just because the iPhone 4 is so distinct looking. I don't think they'll go with a curved back a la 3GS, but I agree it probably won't have the hard edges or glass backside the iPhone 4 has. Antennae band will probably go away considering the fiasco and time since that Apple has had to work out something better.

I really don't know about the home button.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

This looks too thin for a phone. Could this be for a new Touch instead?

The thinner they make these things, the more concerned I am that they will flex and crack.

 

[Padraig]

I really don't like the mockup. Something about the front just seems off and un-Apple like. Personally I love the design of the iPhone 4 but I know they can't keep that design forever.

One thing I can't see Apple doing is making all the developers change the dimensions of their apps again. If they want to keep the "retina" display, the biggest they could make the screen is 3.8". I modified the mock-up a bit and shrunk the display by 5% to make the display roughly 3.8" and I think it looks more like something Apple would release.

Just posting this for speculation, not trying to argue. Nobody knows what it will look like until Steve is out on stage.

Image

I'm really surprised that the mockup used a 4 inch display when the rumors seem to be suggesting a smaller increase; especially when it doesn't "fit" the device. Your minor adjustment makes for a much nicer and believable phone.

 

[840quadra]

I know I am hours late, but totally not a fan of that design. Screen size, internal upgrades, and software asside, it simply looks quite similar to the current generation iPod Touch, previous iPhones, and many Android phones currently out on the market. Just looks like a step backwards in some ways.

At a risk of sounding like an old VW fan, I like my squareback iPhone 4. Regardless, I will likely skip this generation as my iPhone isn't even a year old, and I tend to old onto my old apple Tech for quite a while!

Just my opinion, that's all.

 

[Sheza]

I think the new design looks awesome!

Apple's products all combining together using the same material looks like a good idea. The Mac Book Air, iMac, Mac Mini and iPad etc all have similar materials. Now the iPhone 5 needs an iPad 2 back! Yes please!

 

[Nutes]

Aluminum Back! Larger Screen! Love it.

Looks awesome! I've been waiting 5 years for Apple to bring back the aluminum back. Can't wait. Black for sure.

 

[Shelds]

Im with this guy..

I'm sorry but that looks absolutely hideous.

looks horribly unbalanced to me. symmetry is kind of a key point in apples product design.
At the end of the day i guess theyre really just some dudes 3d renderings, not work by an industrial designer..
haters gonna hate but whatever

 

[Tones2]

To echo all the others that have mentioned these few points...

- Area above screen is too short. The face of the iPhone is all about proportions. You can't have the bottom be larger than the top. It's basic design...

- The screen will not be that close to the edge. Yes there are rumors about edge to edge screens but they are rumors, and also they are stupid when considered in a usability sense. Holding an iPhone casually, you will always hit the edges with either your thumb or the meaty pad beneath your thumb. I do this all the time on my iPhone 4 holding it with one hand when stretching my thumb up across the screen to hit a control on the right near the status bar. Less of that safe space will just cause this even more, creating a very frustrating experience. Plus, it looks worse when considering proportions. The less on the sides, the more the top and bottom jump out at you.

As for the back of the device, that's really anyone's guess. I'd say the more 'iPod Touch-ey' this looks, the less likely it'll happen, but that's just because the iPhone 4 is so distinct looking. I don't think they'll go with a curved back a la 3GS, but I agree it probably won't have the hard edges or glass backside the iPhone 4 has. Antennae band will probably go away considering the fiasco and time since that Apple has had to work out something better.

I really don't know about the home button.

As much as I want a 4"screen, I have to agree with the logic of this statement.

Tony

 

[firewater101]

I'm sorry but that looks absolutely hideous.

Agreed. That is a step back from the current design. I would largely keep the design the same, but lose the glass on the back and make it slightly thinner. Then redesign the antenna band to be internal around the edge where the side of the phone is just part of the back cover, which preferably is aluminum. I just personally think the tapered edges and "wedge" shape to be ugly.

 

[palmerc2]

As I'm reading this on my iPhone 4, it suddenly appears out of date. I will be upgrading IF the i5 has 64GB of capacity.

 

[ranReloaded]

Give landscape symmetry and a Home button less cheesy (what's wrong with the current one?), and I'm sold.

 

[CFreymarc]

What's the chance that what these unauthorized case makers think is the next iPhone is really the next iPod Touch? Now, I know what you are thinking -- there is a speaker on the front of the case. VOIP Phone.

More like "there is a speaker on the front of the case", new iPod Touch.

 

[stanleyboy]

If that's what it's going to look like then I ********** love it! definitely get a white one

 

[TallGuy1970]

Wouldn't your hand/thumb keep hitting the screen? Visually I like it but I feel like I would register a lot of accidental touches if I don't hold it carefully.

It's designed that way to force people to avoid the "death grip!"

 

[divinox]

why bother with modern technology? do you realize that more powerful hardware is actually more useful? it allows for more powerful programs. LOL

dude just sell your iphone and buy a jitterbug.

As someone who does technology research for a living (in fact, im currently working with mobile platforms) i could probably teach you a thing or two about "modern technology".

The spec. race has nothing to do with "modern technology", or making devices "more useful". It has everything to do with consumers being stupid, and capitalizing on that through throwing fancy specs at them.

Talk to anyone initiated in the industry and they will tell you the same thing. Doesnt even matter what part of the industry you're looking at. For example, look at TVs (e.g. Dynamic Ratio) and other displays (e.g. ms) or cameras (e.g. mp). Mobiles are no different (heck, we already have one of the aforementioned, and someone will probably draw the DR out of their marketing ass soon enough as well).

One would think that realistic colors is top priority for display makers (its not). One would think picture quality is top priority for camera makers (its not*). Et cetera.

Final, i dont own an iphone (or plan to). Apple do prove my point however (and slam you with a 500 usd margin for it). Its less about the hardware you have, and more about how well your software can utilize that hardware.

Now, let me ask you something:

In what way is a camera that gives you worse pictures technological evolution? In what way is a display that costs more and requires more juice without giving the user any benefit technological evolution?

Grow a brain, or at least start using the one that God allegedly gave you.


* Ok, they're actually coming around now, dropping mp-rates on high end devices as it gives you BETTER pictures for LESS money, and since the pictures take LESS space you can fit MORE pictures on your device (not to mention speed, processing time etc.). But still...

 

[ThomasJL]

Aluminum is horrible for reception

It's a shame that so many people like the idea of another aluminum iPhone. Aluminum significantly blocks radio signals. There is a reason that Apple's aluminum laptops have always had the worst Wi-Fi reception out of all brands of laptops on the market. There is a reason that many reviews praised the plastic iPhone 3G's reception as superior to its aluminum predecessor. Using aluminum for the iPhone body would be a huge step backwards.

If aluminum is such a great material, then why do 3G-enabled iPads have those ugly black plastic patches in the back? Oh yeah, it's because aluminum significantly blocks all radio signals, especially 3G signals.

It would be a form-over-function move if Apple decided to make the iPhone 5 backside out of aluminum.

 

[Stewie86]

If these dimensions are true, I'm getting it! Not that I wasn't going to get it anyway. But those dimensions would make it thinner than the current iPod Touch!

 

[Juan007]

Unbelievable. If iPhone 5 looks this good then it will sell 100 million units in the US easily as the analysts predicted. It looks like a huge winner, bigger than any product Apple has ever launched before.

 

[vincenz]

It looks good, but the screen size is way out of proportion with the rest of the face.. I'd be very surprised if the Apple design team went in this direction.