iPhone 6

New report says iPhone 6 likely to feature NFC for future mobile payment service

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

According to a new report, the incoming iPhone 6 is going to feature support for NFC technology (or near field communications). Citing sources 'close to the matter,' New York news outlet Brightwire says Apple is planning to utilize the wireless tech in a future mobile payment system.

In fact, Brightwire claims that Tim Cook and company have already inked a deal with China UnionPay service. And under that deal, users will be able to make mobile payments on over 3 million China UnionPay 'QuickPass' POS machines in the country using Passbook on their iPhones...

Design comparison: final iPhone 6 mockup vs iPhone 5s vs fifth-gen iPod touch

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 12, 2014

With everyone and their brother 3D printing iPhone 6 mockups, virtually every single day brings another iPhone 6 "leak" that wants to go viral. There's just too much stuff proliferating out there so iDownloadBlog usually only covers the material we specifically deem newsworthy.

This would typically entail photos and footage that bring something new to the conversation, be it a never-before-seen angle, an interesting design choice or other curious detail.

Today's video is no different.

Created by an Italian enthusiast blog, it pits an unusually detailed physical iPhone 6 mockup against the iPhone 5s and the fifth-generation iPod touch, showing the supposed design differences from various angles...

New renders of alleged 4.7-inch iPhone 6 surface

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

New renderings of what is believed to be the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 surfaced on the web this weekend. We've seen similar drawings before, but this time around the renders have reportedly come straight from primary Apple supplier Foxconn.

The device in the images, which measures 138 x 67mm, lines up with previous information. The design is consistent with the schematic published by MacFan last month, which has since been echoed by multiple cases and dummy units...

New report claims Apple could launch 4.7-inch iPhone 6 as early as August

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

Those excited for Apple's next smartphone may not have to wait as long as originally thought to get their hands on one. Reuters passes along a new report from Taiwan's Economic Daily News this morning which claims that the iPhone 6 could be just three months away.

Citing anonymous sources in Apple's supply chain, the Daily News says that the 4.7-inch model of the new iPhone will reach stores as soon as August. The 5.5-inch model, the report says, will land a month later in September—same as the iPhone 5s and the 5 before it...

TSMC reportedly ships first batch of Touch ID sensors for upcoming iPhones and iPads

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated September 28, 2016

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world's top semiconductor foundry, has reportedly shipped the first batch of the second-generation Touch ID sensors to Apple for use in the upcoming second-generation iPad Air, third-generation iPad mini and of course iPhone 6.

As iDownloadBlog exclusively reported earlier this month, code fragments in iOS 7.1 indicate that Touch ID is coming to iPads, possibly this year and to other iOS devices as well, a discovery further corroborated by previous supply chain reports...

Pegatron receives orders for 4.7-inch iPhone 6 ahead of fall launch

Cody Lee ∙ May 7, 2014

According to a new report, Pegatron has received orders from the Cupertino company to start production on the iPhone 6. Taiwan's Industrial and Commercial Times says that the supplier has been tasked with producing around 15% of all units of the upcoming 4.7-inch handset.

The news matches up with previous chatter, which claimed that Apple would be splitting up iPhone 6 orders between Foxconn and Pegatron. It was initially believed, however, that the split would be somewhere around 50-50, so it's unclear what—if anything—has changed...

iPhablet to be pricey due to costly sapphire screen?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 29, 2016

SEC filings have confirmed that Apple partnered recently with a company called GT Advanced which operates a manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona that makes sapphire components. We also know for a fact that Apple prepaid more than half a billion dollars to buy sophisticated furnaces and equipment for the plant, securing multi-year output of sapphire parts on an exclusive basis.

Manufacture of sapphire components commenced recently, according to sources. Now, industrial-scale production like this points beyond sapphire components for the Touch ID sensor and the iSight camera lens protection.

Watchers speculate that Apple's phablet - an iPhone 6, if you will - has a massive sapphire-hardened 5.5-inch screen. But, a new post on China's micro-blogging platform cautions that the rising cost of sapphire display production may hinder Apple's ability to roll out the technology across its entire iOS device lineup...

Images of alleged white and silver iPhone 6 dummy unit surface

Cody Lee ∙ May 2, 2014

We're adding to the stockpile of alleged 'iPhone 6' evidence this morning with a handful of new photos that purportedly show a white and silver dummy unit of the upcoming handset. The device looks very similar to the slate black unit that surfaced online earlier this week.

While the images don't really offer up much in the way of new details on the smartphone, they do help us continue to paint a picture of what it's believed to look like. Most everything we've seen thus far—from schematic drawings to case leaks—points to a homogenous design...

Video of alleged iPhone 6 dummy unit gives a better look at various physical changes

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 29, 2016

Two days ago, French blog NowhereElse.fr passed along a batch of photos of an alleged iPhone 6 dummy unit that appear consistent with earlier mockups, photos of supposed cases, molds, front panel parts, schematic drawings and more.

"Evidence" - and I use the term loosely - seems to point to an ultra-thin device with a slim 6mm body with various physical changes such as a relocated sleep/wake button, redesigned volume buttons and so forth.

Give the video included after a break a watch and join us in the comment section...

Apple begins sending sapphire to China as iPhone 6 production ramps up

Cody Lee ∙ April 30, 2014

Apple announced last fall that it was opening up a new crystal sapphire production plant in Mesa, Arizona with partner GT Advanced Technologies. It's believed that the company is using the facility to make sapphire display covers for the upcoming iPhone 6.

Adding weight to the theory is a new report claiming that GT shipped small quantities of sapphire from Arizona to one of Apple’s partners in China this month. The news comes as manufacturers are believed to be ramping up production on the next-gen iPhone...

New photos of alleged iPhone 6 dummy unit show larger, slimmer device

Cody Lee ∙ April 29, 2014

New photos of an alleged 'iPhone 6' dummy unit surfaced this afternoon. The images depict a device that is noticeably larger and thinner than the current iPhone 5s, with rounded corners, and an overall design that matches up with previous information.

There's no word on where the physical mockups came from, and there's obviously no way to determine their validity. But our friends over at Nowhereelse.fr say that the snapshots were published by a long-time member of a well-known Chinese forum...

Analyst on iPhone 6 camera: no protruding lens, software-based image stabilization

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 29, 2016

As we told you before, supposed case leaks indicate that Apple's upcoming iPhone 6 could be as thin as the current-generation iPod touch, its slim body purportedly measuring between 6.5mm and 7.0mm (the iPhone 5s is 7.6mm thick).

But Apple's desire to create an ultra-thin phone might also result in an unsightly camera lens protrusion on the back, according to purported production images.

The exposed camera design is said to be the result of the larger components needed for a new optical image stabilization feature. Apple's engineers are faced with a dilemma: create an ultra-thin device that features optical image stabilization and has the annoying protrusion or expand the device slightly to 7.5mm to get rid of the protruded module on the back.

But there's allegedly a third option: tap the speedy A8 processor and the power of software to implement an electronic rather than optical image stabilization. This would allow Apple to realize the thin appearance of the device while doing away with the rumored bulge on the back...