What we expect on the spec chart (Possibly)
- Release Date: September 2014
- Larger screen: 4.7" (perhaps 1704x960 pixels) and 5.5"
- Sapphire crystal screen
- Faster and more efficient A8 chip
Apple acknowledged high consumer demand for phones with larger displays in one of its own internal presentations, and based on that evidence, it seems clear the company is planning to address the growing segment of market that desire bigger phones.DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Current iPhones use Low Temperature Poly Silicon (LTPS) technology, and Apple is likely to continue using that technology for the iPhone 6.With the iPad Air and Retina iPad mini, Apple adopted Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide (IGZO) technology in order to create thinner displays that draw less power than seen with the amorphous silicon (a-Si) displays used on previous models, but LTPS already offers better electron mobility than IGZO and thus Apple will almost certainly continue using LTPS in its smaller iOS devices for the time being.GLASS
Apple currently uses durable and damage resistant Corning Gorilla Glass for its iPhones, but reports have suggested that the company could switch to sapphire crystal for future displays.Sapphire crystal, which is currently used for small iPhone elements like the camera lens and the home button of the iPhone 5s, has historically been prohibitively expensive to produce in larger quantities, but Apple has recently partnered with GT Advanced to ramp up sapphire production.BatteryA new leak from sources inside Apple's Asian supply network suggests that not only will the phone feature a larger battery cell but supports rumours of an all new handset design with a larger display panel.The leaked info and images come via Chinese source MyDrivers.com, which reports the iPhone 6's battery will be rated between 1,700mAh and 2,000mAh, with the lower option being more likely. Certainly the 1,700mAh rating would be a logical step up from the previous iPhones as the iPhone 5S went up to 1,570mAh from the 1,440mAh of the iPhone 5.A8 ChipsetAccoridng to G For Games, TSMC will now undertake production of Apple’s 20nm A8 chipset for the iPhone 6 – and that same chipset will presumably be used inside Apple’s next-generation iPads as well. Here’s a broader overview of what we can expect from the iPhone 6’s A8 chipset and what it'll mean for Apple's 2014 phones and tablets from AnandTech’s Anand Lai Shimpi:“By now we know to expect an "A8" branded Apple SoC in the iPhone 6 and iPad Air successors later this year. There's little benefit in going substantially wider than Cyclone, but there's still a ton of room to improve performance. One obvious example would be through frequency scaling. Cyclone is clocked very conservatively (1.3GHz in the 5s/iPad mini with Retina Display and 1.4GHz in the iPad Air), assuming Apple moves to a 20nm process later this year it should be possible to get some performance by increasing clock speed scaling without a power penalty. I suspect Apple has more tricks up its sleeve than that however. Swift and Cyclone were two tocks in a row by Intel's definition, a third in 3 years would be unusual but not impossible (Intel sort of committed to doing the same with Saltwell/Silvermont/Airmont in 2012 - 2014).”NFCAccording to Morgan Stanley Apple will be adopting NFC with the help of NXP. The M7 motion-sensing chip within the Apple iPhone 5s was supplied by NXP so it’s likely the NFC wireless hardware will be supplied by the same company.A Morgan Stanley analyst said “NXP is well positioned to participate in Apple’s mobile payments ecosystem. The company signed a licensing agreement with a customer in Q4’13, who we believe is Apple, related to its emerging ID business.“A recent patent filing by Apple revealed potential use of NFC and secure element, which we think could be embedded. NXP has also accelerated R&D spend to support a new program related to the IP deal, with revenue expected in 2H, lining up well with the launch of iPhone 6. We see this potentially adding $250mn in sales and EPS of $0.25 in 2015.”It’s not only Morgan Stanley though; various other analyst firms have been reporting the same kind of rumours.NFC, at least according to French site, Nowhereelse, now looks to be something of a certainty inside the iPhone 6. The blog has got its hands on a leaked image of the motherboard from inside one of Apple’s upcoming iPhone 6 units. As you can see, the iPhone 6’s setup is dramatically larger than its predecessor’s – and the reason, says the report, is NFC.
IPHONE 6 CAMERA
Another source – this time Apple Insider – had this to say about the iPhone 6's imaging technology: "People familiar with the matter have told us Apple will likely forego a high-megapixel camera in its 2014 iPhone offerings, in favor of tweaking other image-enhancing components. In other words, megapixels are less of a priority for Apple than overall image quality."Adding further legitimacy to the claims, the US Patent & Trademark Office has received a patent application from Apple for an OIS setup and improved autofocus technology. This will include "voice coil motor actuators" for allowing the lens to adjust with movement. The move is a believable one, as Apple has previously emphasised its reluctance to upscale the megapixel count, instead insisting it will concentrate on tweaking its existing hardware."Lytro" Camera
