Have a look of Iphone 7

Have a look of Iphone 7

Update: Blueprint sketches and unofficial renders might be all that we currently have to go on for hints as to what the iPhone 7 could look like. But Stuff.tv has gathered some iPhone 7 Plus intel that could offer big hints as to what to expect in the larger variant and new reports suggest a lot will be changing internally.

Just as some of the rumors speculate, the renders of the iPhone 7 Plus appears to lack a headphone jack. While we won't know for sure if Apple has officially dropped 3.5mm jack support, the latest evidence doesn't look good for those of us who are unwilling to ditch the standard.

Next up, the iPhone 7 Plus render features a Smart Connector port, much like what's found on the iPad Pro and iPad Pro 9.7. While the latest bit of potential iPhone 7 info lacks the Smart Connector, it's tough to say at this point this proprietary port will show up on the smaller device or not.

Original article follows below...

Looking for the iPhone SE? Then you'll want our everything you need to knowarticle.

With the iPhone 6S, Apple delivered its best handset yet, but aside from sporting some fancy new 3D Touch technology, it was also very similar to the iPhone 6.

That was to be expected – after all, Apple typically only overhauls its handsets once every two years, but that overhaul is due with the iPhone 7, so we're expecting and hoping for big changes: think a whole new design, piles of power and a bunch of new features.

The leaks, rumors and reports are already ramping up, although the iPhone 7 probably won't arrive until late 2016. We've collected all the latest from around the web and beyond for you below, to give you the clearest picture possible of what you can expect from the new iPhone.

• Fancy Android? Here's everything you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy S7

In a rush? Get the latest iPhone 7 news in our video roundup below:

Cut to the chase

• What is it? Apple's next all-new iPhone
• When is it out? Likely September 2016
• What will it cost? Probably the same as the iPhone 6S

iPhone 7 release date

If we were betting people, we'd say the iPhone 7 will probably arrive in September 2016. Apple tends to stick to a schedule, and the last few iPhones have all been launched in the month of September.

But according to a 'reliable source' Apple might actually bring it to market earlier. Sadly, how much earlier is unclear, but it will take a while to even finish development and manufacture of the phone, so we wouldn't expect to see it before the summer. September is still the best bet for now.

iPhone 7 design

Hottest leaks:

• A super slim build
• Water resistance
• No more antenna lines

The iPhone 6S looked a lot like the iPhone 6, but it's likely to be all-change with the iPhone 7. Exactly what form that change will take remains to be seen, but there are some rumors.

For one thing, it could be even slimmer than the 7.1mm-thick iPhone 6S; Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities reckons it'll be dropping to between 6mm and 6.5mm thick. That sounds unnecessarily slim to us, especially as it could cause the battery life to take a hit, but the Samsung Galaxy S6 is only marginally thicker at 6.8mm, so it's possible.

If TSMC makes the chips, as has been rumored, then some space could be saved, which might help Apple slim it down without making sacrifices in other areas, while another report claims Apple will use fan-out technology to save space and reduce the thickness of the iPhone 7.

Slimming down the iPhone 7 could mean Apple will have to ditch the bulky 3.5mm headphone jack. That could lead to a great dependence on Bluetooth headphones, but another leak also suggests there will also be a pair of specialApple earbuds included in the iPhone 7 box.

• If Apple ditches the headphone jack, you'll want to check out these DACs

Don't ditch your headphones just yet though, as an image supposedly showing iPhone 7 circuitry has emerged and the 3.5mm jack is intact in it. Removing the jack could do more harm than good, especially in the short term, so we doubt it will happen.

Another rumor suggests the iPhone 7 will have an all-metal design with a bezel-less display. It would be a big change for the iPhone design, but bringing in a new kind of screen technology would be a sensible move for Apple.

The iPhone 7 could be built to last too, as according to Mac Otakara there are a number of iPhone prototypes with "ruggedized" features, which could mean a water and dust-resistant phone is on the way.

In fact, that's exactly what we'll get according to a supply chain source. Yet another suggestion of a waterproof iPhone 7 comes from the Apple supplier Japan Display. The supplier has come up with a new technology called "Pixel Eyes", that is now in its second generation and makes it easier to use the screen while you have wet fingers.

That's always an issue with waterproof phones such as the Sony Xperia Z line, so the fact Apple's main supplier is looking to stop the problem may be a big hint at what the iPhone 7 will do.

However, another report has suggested Apple will opt for a slimmer phone rather than a waterproof iPhone 7. Apple will likely get a new LCD display technology as well, which could allow the iPhone 7 to be 1mm thinner than before.

A design tweak rumor which will likely please many is that Apple will ditch the camera bump which has been present since the iPhone 6/6Plus - with the firm going for a sleeker finish on the iPhone 7. As well as being totally flat the back could also be uninterrupted, as the same report points towards the removal of the antenna bands.

That tallies with an image leak picked up by Nowhereelse.fr, which claims its snapshot shows the iPhone 7 to have no antenna bands and a larger camera.

A few days after that, a leak of the iPhone 7 chassis design showed the new design for the antennas. So it increasingly seems Apple may sort out one of the more controversial elements of the design of the iPhone 6S.

However, the overall size and shape of the iPhone 7 may not change much, as a sketch complete with dimensions shows it as being the same length and width as the iPhone 6S, as well as having similarly curved corners. That would be surprising for a new numbered model though and the sketch could easily be a fake.

A purported photograph of the back panel has emerged on MobiPicker, showing the phone in gold with a rounded design, antenna lines at the top and bottom and a new camera module, which could be a laser autofocus. The image is likely a fake, but the general design is largely in line with rumors so it could still be the shape of things to come.

A render, based on supposed technical drawings of the phone, has also surfaced. According to GSMArena the colors and materials may differ slightly in the finished phone, but the placement of the ports, buttons and camera should all be accurate. It's in line with other leaks, though as it's an unofficial render it should be taken with the usual pinch of salt.

iPhone 7 screen

Hottest leaks:

• A sharper screen
• An edge-to-edge display

The iPhone 7 could be in for a big resolution jump if a DigiTimes source is to be believed, as Apple is apparently likely to move to glass-on-glass screens, which in turn opens up the possibility of a QHD or even a 4K display.

A lot of Android phones already have QHD screens, and the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium is 4K, so it's possible that Apple will pump up the resolution of its next flagship, but given that the iPhone 6S isn't even 1080p we're sceptical that it'll get anywhere near 4K.

If the iPhone 7 does get higher resolution it might get bigger too, especially as rival phones are growing in size all the time. We're not convinced though – we'd still bet on seeing 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models.

Then there's the first image of the LCD backlight on the iPhone 7. It comes from trusted French blog NoWhereElse and shows the panel from the iPhone 7 up against the iPhone 6S.

All the connectors are in different locations around the phone, suggesting there will be a few design changes on the next iPhone.

A jump in resolution might not be the only way the iPhone 7 imitates Android though, as there's also talk that it could switch from an LCD display to an OLED one, much like Samsung uses on most of its phones.

One new rumor suggests the iPhone 7S will be the first Apple phone to feature an OLED display. The rumor comes from Apple telling supply chain sources that it will be switching from LCD panels to OLED panels in the next couple of years.

Sadly it doesn't seem like the technology will be here in time for the iPhone 7 and we'll have to wait for the iPhone 7S. That said, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has dismissed the rumor, arguing that Apple won't likely switch to AMOLED before 2019.

On the other hand it's now been reported by the Chinese Wall Street Journal that Apple has ordered 100 million 5.5-inch AMOLED panels for a 2017 iPhone. So all we can say with any certainty right now is that we won't see an AMOLED iPhone this year.

There's also talk of Apple taking a leaf out of Samsung's book and opting for a5.8-inch curved AMOLED display on a future iPhone, although this could be something for the iPhone 8 rather than the iPhone 7.

Hopes of an edge-to-edge display on the iPhone 7 have been raised slightly after an image appeared online claiming to show just that - although having seen hundreds of iPhone leaks over the years we think this offering looks rather fake.

The iPhone 7 screen could be hard to smash, as an Apple patent has been unearthed showing bumpers which burst out from the edges of the screen to ensure it doesn't touch the floor when dropped. Patents often don't turn into products, but you never know – and it would certainly be nice to see a stronger screen.

3D Touch is bound to make a return, though it's likely to be improved in some way, perhaps by enabling you to scroll through the previews of content you 'peek' into, rather than just having static previews.

iPhone 7 rivals

The iPhone 7 is likely a way off yet, but many of its main rivals have already launched. The biggest ones are the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge. Both of these phones have received five star reviews on techradar - which we hadn't previously given out to a phone for two years - so Apple has some serious work to do.

• Check out our full reviews of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

The HTC 10 looks to be a worthy alternative to Apple's handset too. Coming from HTC it's as stylish as you'd hope and the audio quality is a cut above.

• Check out our full HTC 10 review

There's also the 4-inch iPhone SE which has arrived with a palm friendly size, 6S specs and an affordable price tag. For those looking for a phone which is manageable in one hand, this is the one you want.

• Check out our full iPhone SE review

iPhone 7 camera and battery

Hottest leaks:

• A dual-lens snapper
• No more camera bump
• A larger battery

Apple overhauled its camera tech for the iPhone 6S, replacing its old 8MP snapper with a shiny new 12MP one and boosting the front-facing camera up to 5MP.

Given that Apple tends to stick with camera components for a long time we wouldn't expect to see a change in megapixels for the iPhone 7, but there's a good chance it will have performance tweaks and additional features to help set it apart. Optical image stabilization perhaps?

A shot of the rear of the iPhone 7 from Nowhereelse.fr suggests the camera lens will be bigger. It doesn't seem to be a dual-camera lens, but it looks much larger so may mean some big improvements on the camera tech.

As for the iPhone 7 Plus, trusted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo at KGI Securities in South Korea believes the larger phone may go for a dual-camera set up. It would allow for optical zoom and give a wider field of view in shots - but it's not exactly certain why this feature would only be on the phablet version of the iPhone 7.

The analyst hasn't also said he believed there may be two versions of the iPhone 7 Plus, one without this camera set up and another with it, which he dubbed the iPhone 7 Pro. He's walked back that speculation, saying that there will be just one iPhone 7 Plus, and it'll feature that dual lens setup. It sounds like the camera specs unearthed in a recent Apple patent.

The benefit to the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 without the dual camera system is that a smaller lens could remove the camera bump while still packing in plenty of tech.

As for the battery, it was one of the greatest failings of the iPhone 6S, so we're really hoping for some improvements here. Sadly, though, if the phone does slim down further as is being rumored there's not much hope of a big juice pack - or is there?

A recent leak suggests that Apple will increase the battery size in the iPhone 7 while reducing the handset's thickness. If that's true, then great, but we're not holding out much hope.

iPhone 7 OS and power

Hottest leaks:

• A hexa-core processor
• 3GB of RAM
• iOS 10

The iPhone 7 could be in for a huge performance boost, with whispers on Weibothat the phone will pack a hexa-core A10 chip, up from just a dual-core processor in the iPhone 6S. We're sceptical that Apple would go for that much of a jump, but it's an exciting thought.

We're not likely to see any more RAM in the iPhone 7, as Apple only just pushed the iPhone 6S up to 2GB, so it will likely stick with that for a while yet. However, the iPhone 7 Plus may upgrade to 3GB of RAM to account for its dual camera image processing.

3GB of RAM is big jump in a short amount of time for the new 5.5-inch iPhone 7. The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus just got 2GB of RAM seven months ago, and the 1GB of RAM had been three generations strong in iPhone 6, iPhone 5S and iPhone 5.

As for the OS, we'd expect to see the iPhone 7 land with iOS 10, since we're up toiOS 9 on the iPhone 6S. That's likely to include improvements to Siri, an Apple Music redesign and a standalone HomeKit app, among other changes.

iPhone 7 other features

Hottest leaks:

• A pressure-sensitive home button
• Wireless charging
• A smaller headphone jack

While the iPhone 7 is largely expected look similar to the iPhone 6S it could be a very different beast on the inside, as according to CNBC, the Economic Daily News reported that the iPhone 7 will be "more complex" to manufacture than any previous iPhone, suggesting there could be a lot going on under the hood. What exactly we'll see remains to be seen, but a number of possibilities have been rumored.

We could be in for a redesigned home button, as according to one source it won't be a button so much as a sensor that you just have to place your finger on. The same source reckons that it might also be pressure-sensitive, so presumably if you press harder something different will happen, such as it taking you to a different screen.

A whole slew of possible features are apparently in testing for the iPhone 7, with five different prototypes being used to test multi-Force Touch tech, a dual camera, wireless charging, a fingerprint scanner in the screen and a USB Type-C connector that's compatible with headsets.

That all comes from a post on Chinese social networking site Weibo, but even if it's true given that there are apparently five different prototypes much of this may not make it into the final phone.

In other rumors, the iPhone 7 could have a smaller headphone jack than the iPhone 6S. We're hesitant to call this a feature, as it's more a likely annoyance which could be necessary in order to further slim the phone down.

There's an Apple patent which points to a 2mm connector, down from the standard 3.5mm headphone jack found on most phones. That would certainly help Apple slim the device down, but would also mean you'd either need special headphones or an adapter. Fortunately a newer leak suggests the iPhone 7's headphone jack won't be changing after all, which is good news as far as we're concerned.

iPhone 7 Smart Connector or no Smart Connector?

One of the weirdest iPhone 7 rumors is that it might have a Smart Connector like the iPad Pro range. On Apple's slates this allows for the connection of a keyboard, which seems an unlikely fit for a phone, but it's possible that one could be used to connect headphones if the 3.5mm headphone jack really is ditched - something which itself seems unlikely.

So far there are conflicting rumors on whether or not it will have a Smart Connector. The first we heard of it was from supply chain sources who revealed a dummy iPhone 7 Plus unit to Mac Otakara. As you can see in the image above it has three tell-tale Smart Connector dots at the bottom.

A few weeks later the same site came back and said that Apple had "shelved" plans for a Smart Connector port on its next phone.

But that wasn't the end of the story. Since then another dummy has popped up, this time from an anonymous tipster at MacRumors. The dummy is likely of an iPhone 7, rather than an iPhone 7 Plus, as you can tell from the smaller camera, and once again there's a Smart Connector present.

It could easily have been faked and even if it wasn't it's possibly an old dummy from back when Apple was apparently considering it. A Smart Connector on the iPhone 7 is still possible, but we'd say it's unlikely, as it never made a whole lot of sense to begin with.

iPhone 7 cost

There aren't any price rumors yet, but in all likelihood the iPhone 7 will cost roughly what the iPhone 6S currently retails for. That would make it $649/£539/AU$1,079 upwards.

Though if Apple finally ditches the 16GB model the starting price might be even higher.