“A spate of recent reports claim Apple will deliver so many enhancements within its next major iPhone iteration that it intends skipping its customary ‘S-series’ nomenclature to introduce the product as ‘iPhone 7,'” Jonny Evans writes for Computerworld. “I asked the rumormill what we should expect from the device, this is what it said.”
“Expect new metal processes, faster processors, super-advanced digital imaging technology, major improvements to the UI (such as Force Touch), and of course (as ever) the device to be lighter, slimmer and stronger than before,” Evans writes. “One Chinese language title claims Apple intends using metal alloys it developed while creating the Apple Watch in its new smartphone – that’s significant in many ways: I imagine these processes are a product of the company’s exclusive deal with Liquidmetal.”
Read more in the full article here.
They can stop with the slimmer.
After evaluating all my iPhones (4, 4s, 5, 5s, and 6) with and without cases, I’ve come to the conclusion that the reason the bare 6 is so hard to hold on to is exactly because it is so thin.
Beyond protection, I’m forced to put a case on these things (iP6) just so it doesn’t go flying out of my hands. The 5/5s was better, but the 4/4s were the phones I could easily hold without a case with no fear of them slipping out of my hand.
Make it thicker. Make the battery last several days. The phones (6/6+) are already gigantic. Making them thinner does not make up for this fact.
Ive’s obsession with thinness has gone too far.
Agreed, I got a slim case for my phone purely to protect the protruding camera and to add a slight texture so I wouldn’t drop it.
You beat me to it !!
i agree. i have a very thin cover on my iphone (the 6) for the first time ever. it is just thick enough that the camera lens doesn’t protrude. the protruding lens should have been apple’s first clue that they made the iphone too thin.
Apple knows that by far the vast majority of iPhone owners prefer a case. Therefore the cases were specifically made to cover a protruding camera.
Common sense at last
Agreed. If you keep your nails short as I do, the rounded edges of the phone can make picking it up from a table take more effort than should be required. You have to somehow get one edge up so that you slide your fingers underneath it.
I agree than the iPhone 6 without a case is too thin, and that the protruding camera is a design flaw. It basically mandates using a case, or the phone teeters on the table.
However, I must say that the fact that the iPhone 6 is so thin, and that I’ve always used a rubber case on my phones, means that the overall thickness (with case) is pretty nice. I’ve found the iPhone 6 thinness to not be a problem at all, but as I say, I use a pretty thick case.
Makes me wonder if Ive is expecting use to use a case. Make the phone ultra thin, so that with case it feels right.
there is a saying “you can never be too thin or too wobbly.” obviously no one likes a wobbly phone, but a lot of people prefer their gadgets as thin as possible.
I love the smell of Liquidmetal in the morning.
It smells like… like…
I dunno – what the hell does Liquidmetal smell like?!!
Vapor.
I don’t know how the author “imagines” the use of Liquid Metal from Apple’s alloy work with the Apple Watch. There is no Liquid Metal Apple Watch. Previous stories have alluded to the use of the same Aluminum alloy.
Apple, please don’t forget that market segment looking for a smallish iPhone, i.e., 4 inch screen.
It needs to be born in mind that if a user is wearing an Apple Watch, their iPhone will be kept in their pockets for more of the time, so it needs to be more pocket friendly ( smaller ).
We’ve done slim. We need to go back to ‘user experience’ and the biggest issue is not the screen resolution or the processor speed; it’s the threat that the thing closes down on you just at the wrong time.
How about, iPhone Stamina, or MaxPower.
let’s have a phone that can run for 4 days on a single charge.
make it thin then fill the rest up with a bloody big battery.
– no chance of ‘bendigate’
– no need to carry the charger when you overnight somewhere
– stay connected to the world !
Make it happen Apple. Make it thicker with better battery please, no more thinness.
I enjoy reading posts here from people that think they know Apple’s customers better than Apple does. You don’t think for a minute that Apple wouldn’t put in a bigger batter if they thought that’s what the majority of customers wanted?
Apple has done tons of research about how long a phone needs to run, how often people are happy to charge their devices, etc, etc.
As long as the iPhone goes for a full day (approx) being used in an average way then that’s all the battery it needs. People can add battery cases as they like – people that prefer thinness can’t pull off anything.
I’m not saying what a focus group of Apple customers might think. I’m stating a personal preference – and by the looks of it, there are many other posts which share the same view. And none that are asking for the next phone to be thinner.
Auntie Apple may know best about many new technologies – but this is a fairly mature technology as we head into the 7th generation – so we are really talking about user experience of the device as it is and not future features.
The aluminum alloy that Apple used for the Sport is 7000 series. Apple may have selected some exotic form of 7000 series Al, but it just another of the myriad alloys of Al that are used in various industries. For instance 2024 is often used in automotive applications and 6061 is often used in aerospace applications (often using a T6 heat treatment). 7000 series Al is not a magical material and it is not LiquidMetal. It is simply a harder alloy which is a bit more difficult to machine. There are also heat treatments which could be employed to tailor the mechanical properties of the alloy.
Thin enough. Too thin.
Me want more BATTERY!!!
I don’t like turning off location services, wifi and bluetooth before going for the evening because my phone is low on juice.
I’d take a thicker iPhone with a bigger battery any day of the week over an even thinner iPhone.
Come on Apple, there’s thin and then there’s too thin… the 6 falls into the latter IMO.
Posted from my iPhone 6.
Waterproof would be nice?
I have a medical condition, but not once have I ever dropped an iPhone in the toilet! And I keep my phone in a belt case when not in use, but adjusted quite rapidly to its thinness. I was afraid that the thinness and size, coming from a 4S, would be a tough adjustment- but nope. No complaints at all, and the 4S is ridiculous when I use it.