iPhone 6: Release date, rumours, features and news

Here you'll find all the latest news on the iPhone 6 release date, the rumours, upcoming features and specs on the eagerly anticipated iPhone update

 

The next iPhone – which the internet is nominally calling the iPhone 6 through basic numerical guesswork – is probably the most hotly anticipated gadget on the planet right now.

Previous wisdom would suggest we could be in line for a stopgap, perhaps in the form of a cheap iPhone, before the year is out. What this article is concerned with however are rumours relating to the next fully formed smartphone from Apple.

Here you'll find all the latest news on the iPhone 6 including possible release dates, the rumours as well as upcoming features and specs that T3.com has managed to sift from the big, bad world of the internet.

Apple’s policy of zero information prior to actually launching the product has always acted as petroleum for the iPhone 6 rumours. 

As such, tips, speculation and murmurings as to what the iPhone 6 will be started to appear almost as soon as the iPhone 5 was launched.

Some industry punts are so specific they cause some eyebrow raising – one even predicts not only that a cheaper iPhone will be launched, but that we’ll see it in May, and that by the end of the year it will sell 53 million units.

While the analyst in question will certainly be on for a big win at the bookies if that particular bet comes in, we bring you a round up of some of the other seemingly logical rumours.

The iPhone 5S is a completely different phone

Let’s start with the fact that alongside a full fat iPhone 6, there are rumblings that Apple will launch a budget iPhone - possibly called the iPhone 5S or the iPhone Light - which will revert back to the plastic chassis found on the iPhone 3G and the iPhone 3GS.

While this would go against the somewhat ‘premium’ pricing model of Apple products, DigiTimes reports that sources within the upstream supply chain have confirmed that Apple is in the process of sourcing the plastic parts needed for a budget iPhone including a chassis.

In a recent earnings call CEO Tim Cook made the fair point that taking any particular bit of data relating to a supply chain of a big firm like Apple won’t necessarily tell you much about the bigger picture.  

However he then also blurted out, when asked about the possibility of cheaper iPhones – “We’ve had a great track record on iPod of offering different products at different price points.” – which many have taken to mean confirmation they’re working on one.

Head over to our iPhone 5S rumours piece to find out all the latest information on release date, specs and whether or not it'll come sporting a plastic shell check

Apple iPhone 6 screen

Now, onto the iPhone 6 proper – and we’ll start with the screen. Often the display on a new Apple product pushes the boundaries of the industry.

Many saw the increased 4-inch screen size on the iPhone 5 as a move on Apple’s part to keep up with the screen sizes of the larger Android powered phones like the recent Sony Xperia Z or Samsung Galaxy S4. However, 5-inches is more like the premium screen size right now – so for the iPhone 6, we could see apple stepping up the size once again.

According to MacRumours, one analyst has suggested that Apple could be looking to implement a 4.8-inch Retina+ IGZO screen made by Sharp, which will make the iPhone 6 display thinner, brighter and much clearer – boasting better than HD resolutions.

The other area where we might see some significant improvement for the iPhone 6 is in the sensitivity of the screen. According to a report picked up by PatentlyApple, Sharp has been busy putting together a capacitive display with a panel eight times more sensitive than current screens.

The rumour says that the technology can be implemented in any screen from 5-inches to 60-inches across. So, if there’s a grain of truth in the Apple TV rumours that keep appearing – this might be suitable for that too.

A few advantages of this display are that it’s a great deal thinner than current screens and the fact that you can use it in winter with gloves on. And, as residents of the UK, that’s a big win for all of us. What’s more, this display isn’t a prototype; it’s actually in production right now over at Sharp’s top secret facility.

iPhone 6 appearance

Apple's new iPhone 6 may have a curved, wraparound screen, according to a recent Apple patent filing. The patent shows off an iPhone design with a wraparound AMOLED screen, which appears to be similar in design to the fourth generation iPod Nano, has gained particular attention.