iPhone 7 Plus

Apple asks suppliers to prepare for much higher-than-expected iPhone 7 production

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 25, 2017

Peak iPhone? If the latest supply chain report is to be trusted, the Cupertino firm doesn't envision iPhone sales tapering off anytime soon, at least not this year. Barron's said Monday, citing a report in the Taiwanese publication Economic Daily Times, that Apple has now asked its contract manufacturers and Asian suppliers to prepare for a much higher-than-expected iPhone 7 production volume in 2016.

Instead of ordering about 65 million handsets, which would have been in line with what Wall Street had been predicting, Apple needs between 72-78 million units of the new iPhone produced this year.

Alleged iPhone 7 Plus parts reaffirm dual cameras, suggest 16/64/256GB models

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 25, 2016

French leaker Steven Hemmerstoffer yesterday republished an image of some claimed iPhone 7 Plus components, found on Weibo.

The photo appears to show an alleged dual-camera module said to be destined for the handset's refresh, along with NAND flash chips which suggest that the iPhone 7 could include a new 256-gigabyte model.

The presence of both 16GB and 64GB memory modules on the photo might indicate that, disappointingly, the iPhone's highly criticized low-storage 16GB model won't be going away with the forthcoming hardware refresh.

Odd iPhone 7 prototype shell with iPad Pro-like four speaker setup leaks

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 22, 2016

Thus far, we've heard conflicting rumors regarding the next iPhone's speaker setup, with some sources being adamant that the handset would arrive outfitted with stereo speakers and others shaking their head in disagreement, suggesting the iPhone 7 would have the plain old single-speaker setup, like prior models.

Well, how about four speakers?

Prolific leaker Steven Hemmerstoffer today posted on his French-language blog NowhereElse.fr a set images of images of an alleged iPhone 7 prototype case which shows not one, not two, not three but four speakers, two at the top top and an additional two at the bottom.

iPhone 7 may launch with LG-made dual-lens camera because Sony is behind schedule

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 20, 2016

Remember the rumor, backed by a report from reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, that only a 5.5-inch model of an 'iPhone 7' would have a dual-lens camera while its 4.7-inch brethren would get stuck with a boring single-camera module?

Now we know where that came from: Apple's camera supplier Sony has fallen behind schedule, prompting the iPhone maker to add another dual-camera supplier to the mix: LG's Innotek division. That's the current word on the street, according to a Barron's report citing Nomura Securities analysts.

DigiTimes: Intel to supply at least half of iPhone 7’s faster LTE cellular modems

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2016

Rumors continue to swirl that Intel had been commissioned to build LTE modem chips for Apple's upcoming smartphone refresh, a marquee win for the semiconductor giant.

Tuesday, Taiwanese trade publication DigiTimes reported that Intel may supply up to fifty percent of LTE modems for the forthcoming iPhone 7 models.

Although Intel itself will package the modems, the chips will be mass-produced by contract manufacturers TSMC and KYEC, as per DigiTimes, indicating that the iPhone 7's 'A10' system-on-a-chip may integrate an Intel-built LTE modem. These Intel-designed LTE modems for the iPhone 7 are said to be faster than those in the iPhone 6s.

Suppliers ramping up hiring ahead of iPhone 7, which has ‘more complex’ design

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2016

Apple's Taiwanese suppliers have kicked off the recruiting process in preparation for an 'iPhone 7', CNBC reported Tuesday citing Economic Daily News. The mass-hirings have started earlier than usual because the iPhone 7 design is said to be “more complex than previous models,” which meant that Apple's suppliers needed to start work on iPhone 7 parts earlier than on previous iterations.

Both Foxconn and Pegatron had ramped up hiring as they prepared to assemble the upcoming iPhone 7 models, ahead of their expected September release.

This iPhone 7 design drawing lacks stereo speakers

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 12, 2018

As you know, prior rumors have insisted that Apple's iPhone 7 will arrive outfitted with the iPad Pro's Smart Connector and a dual-speaker setup.

Hope you're ready for some bad news though: design blueprints that surfaced today pour cold water on those rumors, suggesting strongly that the new phones won't have stereo speakers. As for two compelling hardware additions—the Smart Connector and dual-lens cameras—they'll be iPhone 7 Plus-exclusives.

KGI: Apple to produce one iPhone 7 Plus model with dual lens and 3GB RAM

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 11, 2016

In somewhat surprising news, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo—arguably the most reliable Apple analyst out there—says there'll be one, not two iPhone 7 Plus models. Previous rumors have pointed to three different configurations: a regular 4.7-inch 'iPhone 7', a larger-screened 5.5-inch 'iPhone 7 Plus' and a so-called 'iPhone 7 Pro' with premium hardware features.

According to Kuo's note to clients, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors, Apple plans to produce a single iPhone 7 Plus model. That 'Plus' edition should be the 'Pro' iPhone you've been waiting for: it'll come outfitted with a dual-lens camera system and have three gigabytes of RAM versus two gigabytes of RAM on the iPhone 6s generation.

Another technical drawing suggests iPhone 7 has same width and height as iPhone 6s

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

Reliable French leaker Steve Hemmerstoffer via his blog NowhereElse.fr and Twitter handle @OnLeaks published this morning another claimed technical drawing of Apple's forthcoming iPhone 7 which suggests that the device will be as tall and wide as the current-generation iPhone 6s, measuring in at exactly 67.1 mm wide and 138.3 mm tall.

The leaked drawing does not specify the depth of the iPhone 7, but previous rumors did point to an iPod touch-thin phone so it's too early to tell if existing cases will fit the iPhone 7 or if these will need reengineering for a thinner form factor.

Apple’s reportedly decided not to add Smart Connector to iPhone 7

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 6, 2016

An unconfirmed iPhone 7 part which leaked out of China back in March had us wondering whether the iconic smartphone might come outfitted with the iPad Pro's Smart Connector. Since then, various analysts and sources have speculated that this could indeed be the case, including the fairly reliable Japanese blog Mac Otakara.

Today, however, Mac Otakara reports that Apple has decided not to include the Smart Connector on the iPhone 7 after all.

Alleged iPhone 7 part has 3.5mm headphone jack we thought would be going away

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

An image of a purported component for Apple's unannounced next-generation iPhone has leaked out yesterday courtesy of French blog NowhereElse.fr and—surprise, surprise—it depicts a 3.5mm headphone jack. Remember, the rumor-mill has been cognizant for months that the century-old analog audio jack will be removed from an 'iPhone 7' in favor of Lightning-powered or wireless headphones.

The image appears to show a Lightning cable assembly, supposedly for an iPhone device, and it looks a tad different compared to the same part found in the current-generation iPhone 6s.

iPhone 7 may come outfitted with a slightly stronger battery than iPhone 6s

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2016

According to a post on the Chinese social network Sina Weibo, Apple's next-generation iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus smartphones may come outfitted with slightly larger batteries than the current-generation iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus models. Based on a claimed spy shot of purported battery packages for the upcoming devices, the iPhone 7 should have a one percent stronger battery than the iPhone 6s while the iPhone 7 Plus should pack in a more than two percent stronger battery versus its iPhone 6s Plus counterpart.