Craziest Apple iPhone 6 predictions
**Apple has a legion of loyal and often crazy fans who feel more love for it’s products than some may say is normal for any inanimate objects. **This degree of fanaticism does mean that plenty of people like to make predictions about what features, functions and forms the next big Apple release will posses.
Here is a look at some of the Apple iPhone 6 concepts and rumours which have been doing the rounds recently, some of which seem a little more reasonable than others.
Each is rated on a scale of likelihood between ‘deffo‘, ‘maybe‘ and ‘wishful thinking‘, based on Apple’s past decisions and the reliability of the source. So without further ado, let’s get into the Apple iPhone 6 designs and capabilities that might make an appearance next year.
Liquidmetal Casing – Maybe
Apple forged a partnership with Liquidmetal Technologies a while back and so far it’s only resulted in a few minor products, but 2014 could be the year in which the iPhone finally gets a chassis which is made of this unusual substance.
This will make the Apple iPhone 6 much more resilient and durable without increasing the weight or requiring a boost to the thickness of the handset. In July it was reported by Engadget that the Apple iPhone 6 could harness this technology to a greater degree, perhaps resulting in a complete design overhaul.
Huge Screen – Wishful Thinking
Apple has been cautious about updating its iPhone range with bigger screens to this point, as even the iPhone 5’s four inch display is small by modern standards. But with the Apple iPhone 6, plenty of fans and industry insiders are predicting bigger things over the horizon.
Some believe that Apple’s 2014 flagship will come with a screen that measures well over five inches across the diagonal, perhaps hitting 5.7 inches or even 6.2 inches in size.
That would make it bigger than Samsung’s Galaxy S4 and would make it more of a phablet, putting it in the same region as the Galaxy Note.
The main reason that this seems unlikely is that the iPad brand is probably better suited to a device of this size, so perhaps a miniature version of the iPad Mini is in the works.
Multiple Sizes – Deffo
Even though a phablet-style iPhone is not that likely next year, it does seem that Apple is set on creating several variants of the range rather than just sticking with one model per year, as has been the case in the past.
2013 will almost certainly see the arrival of the iPhone 5C, a cut price alternative to the flagship iPhone 5S. But this two-tiered approach could be split further, with three devices expected next year.
It is not that outlandish to suggest that the iPhone 6 will come in a trio of flavours, but it does represent a real break from tradition for Apple.
Edge-to-Edge Display – Maybe
One of the most recent concept designs for the Apple iPhone 6 to emerge from a fan comes courtesy of Johnny Plaid, who imagines the handset with a screen that truly reaches the edge of the device’s physical limits.
A bezel or surround of some kind is almost inevitable, but if Apple does opt for a Liquidmetal casing and the latest display technology then it could reduce this to a minimal level for the iPhone 6.
Home Button Removal – Wishful Thinking
Smartphones have been moving away from physical buttons for some time and Google even encourages Android handset manufacturers to get rid of menu keys, instead relying on software-based buttons to get the job done.
Various designs and rumours have suggested that Apple could go the same way with the iPhone 6, but this isn’t a hugely convincing argument.
One of the things which makes it less likely are the rumours that the iPhone 5S will have a fingerprint-scanning home button built into it, allowing for improved security.
The home button could become capacitive rather than fully physical, but the iPhone 6 will almost certainly stick with it. At least until Apple perfects the technology to turn the entire display into a fingerprint scanner.
Wrap-Around Screen – Wishful Thinking
A concept for the Apple iPhone 6 posted by The Mirror suggest that Apple will stick with the iPhone 5C-style colour scheme but actually wrap the screen around the entire device, covering the front, back and sides.
This would make for some interesting apps, but would surely be too costly to produce and implement successfully with current technology. And also, there’s a certain extent to which this idea sounds a little bit pointless.
3D Camera – Maybe
It’s safe to say that 3D technology has not exactly been a hit with consumers since it burst onto the market a couple of years ago.
People just aren’t that interested in sitting with a pair of glasses on their noggins to watch movies and TV shows at home, while 3D-capable displays which don’t require additional eyewear haven’t been much more successful. Nintendo announced this week that its 3DS handheld would be joined by the 2DS, a cheaper model that strips out the 3D capabilities.
That does not mean that Apple’s next-gen iPhone won’t take this technology into account and while it will probably not have a 3D display of its own, it could come with a camera which can shoot still images and video in 3D.
The 3D-ification of consumer technology will let people add depth to their own snaps and clips, so here’s hoping that Apple takes note for its next iPhone design.