iPhone X: We analyse all the latest rumours, news, and leaks to predict what's coming up when Apple releases its next batch of smartphones, now almost certainly set to be headlined by the flagship iPhone X. Everything you need to know about the iPhone X's price, release date and specs in the UK is right here.
For three years now the iPhone hasn't changed its looks. Sure it's had a nip here and a tuck there, but put 2015's iPhone 6 next to an iPhone 7 and you'll be hard pressed to spot the differences. With the likes of LG and Samsung offering new designs with huge screen-to-body ratios it's time for Apple to step up.
The iPhone X looks like the phone that will battle toe-to-toe with the South Korean giants.
Apple isn't just looking to release the iPhone X this year. All signs point to there being three phones to choose from. First there will be the iPhone 8 and larger iPhone 8 Plus, which will be direct upgrades over the the iPhone 7/7 Plus. Then we'll get the cream of the crop, and even more interesting, iPhone X.
So no iterative iPhone 7S and 7S Plus phones this year, if the multitude of leaks are to be believed.
We've sifted through the news and rumours to see whether we can figure out what Apple's got planned. Will 2017 be the year of the iPhone X? The iPhone 8? Or perhaps even both?
Whatever the new iPhone redesign end up being called, you can expect to see it launch in September. Now official invitations have been sent by Apple to an event on 12th September 2017. It's almost certain this is when will get the first official confirmation of the iPhone X, iPhone 8/8 Plus as well as the Apple Watch 3.
The event is set to start at 10am PDT, which means you'll be able to watch the event live in the UK from 6pm 12th September right here. You'll need to use the Edge browser if you're on a PC.
iPhone 7: Wednesday, September 7 (reveal) | Friday, September 16 (release)
iPhone 6S: Wednesday, September 9 (reveal) | Saturday, September 19 (release)
iPhone 6: Tuesday, September 9 (reveal) | Friday, September 19 (release)
iPhone 5S: Tuesday, September 10 (reveal) | Friday, September 20 (release)
iPhone 5: Wednesday, September 12 (reveal), Friday, September 21 (release)
With that in mind, we're expecting Apple's Tuesday, September 12 event to reveal the new iPhone X and its two iterative cohorts. That would put the actual release date on either Friday, September 22, or Saturday, September 23. Again, there's no way to verify this, so apply the usual pinch of salt here.
There's already been a lot of talk that the iPhone X will be the most expensive iPhone ever. Until we see the new iPhone on the Apple Store we won't know for sure, but we've have a good idea.
Serial tipster Benjamin Geskin has been right in the past and says that the next iPhone will cost a whopping $999 for the entry-level 64GB model, rising to $1099 and $1199 for the 256GB and 512GB respectively. The New York Times also believes the iPhone X price will start at $999.
Those are US prices, we haven't yet heard any rumours of UK iPhone X prices, but it won't be far off the mark. At current exchange rates these equate to:
iPhone X 64GB: £756
iPhone X 256GB: £832
iPhone X 512GB: £908
iPhone X Design – What will the iPhone X look like?
Everything we've heard about the iPhone X points to a major redesign that will see the home button removed from the front of the device, in favour of a larger screen than reduces the bezels and reaches the edges of the handset. It's the same thing Samsung has done with its new Galaxy S8 and follows the trend started by LG with its new LG G6, launched in February.
The iPhone 7 was a bit of a disappointment design-wise, retaining most of the iPhone 6S's aesthetics
And that newly enlarged screen is said to make use of an OLED panel, which would be the first time Apple has opted for the technology over the usual LCD panels it uses in current phones.
Some rumours and analyst reports suggest we'll see a curves on the edges of the screen, though some sources have suggested those curves will be 'gentler' than those on Samsung's Galaxy S8. At this point, there's no clear consensus among leakers and analysts on whether the OLED display will indeed be curved or not, but it seems likely.
One of the analysts that has contributed to this talk of curved OLED screens is KGI Securities' Ming-Chi Kuo. Kuo has been quite vocal on the topic of Apple's upcoming iPhone models, and has also claimed the company will be using a glass body (like the one seen in the iPhone 4) for the premium version. That glass will apparently be built this around an aluminium or stainless steel frame.
iPhone X Specs – What hardware will the iPhone X pack?
Because nothing's been confirmed at this point, it's hard to say just what kind of internals the phone will come packing. Whatever the case, it's a safe bet to assume Apple will make sure the 2017 iPhone update improves on its predecessor, and can hold its own against rival models from the likes of Samsung, HTC, LG, Google etc.
It's a dead cert that the firm will debut a new system-on-a-chip (SoC) for the upcoming iPhone X. It has done so with most major iPhone releases in the past, so we're expecting something big for the iPhone 10th anniversary edition. The A10 Fusion chip in the iPhone 7 is already incredibly fast, but whatever follows it – likely an 'A11' processor – will no doubt offer even more impressive performance.
The A10 chip used in the iPhone 7 is already very powerful
Digitimes reported back in July 2016 that Taiwan's TSMC had would be building the new chip: "The Taiwan-based foundry will continue to be the sole supplier of Apple's next-generation A11 processor that will be built on a 10nm FinFET process."
The 10nm manufacturing process (the lower the number, the more densely transistors can be packed in) is the same used for Samsung's new Exynos 8895 and Qualcomm's current Snapdragon 835 – both of which are top-of-the-range processors.
We've also heard a lot about a new camera on the upcoming iPhone, with KGI Securities predicting Apple will carry over the dual-lens camera from the iPhone 7 Plus. A recent report from iDrop suggests the dual camera lenses will be stacked vertically rather than horizontally, as was the case on the iPhone 7 Plus. Everything we've seen so far suggest this is also correct.
Round the front of the iPhone X, there's been talk from analysts of a "revolutionary" front camera that features 3D-sensing capabilities. Sensing the depth and location of objects in a 3D space, the feature could even allow for augmented reality functionality, though that's a long shot at this stage.
Other mooted features include wireless charging and the nifty True Tone technology on the display, which would mean the phone's screen could adapt to changes in ambient light to make viewing more comfortable, as is the case with the recent 9.7-inch iPad Pro.
Credit: Gordon Kelly / Forbes
iPhone X – Coming soon
Apple is almost certainly set to launch more than one iPhone this year, but what shape the new devices take – and what they're called – remains to be seen.
Based on everyone we've spoken to and everything we've read we now favour an iPhone X, coupled with two additional phones that will come with more modest upgrades.
All that said, Apple is sure to have a trick or two up its sleeve that hasn't come to light yet, so stay tuned as we'll be reporting all the latest news and rumours right here.
The iPhone 7 was a bit of a disappointment design-wise, retaining most of the iPhone 6S's aesthetics
The A10 chip used in the iPhone 7 is already very powerful
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