Published on December 28, 2021, 10:00
If the rumors are true, the 'iPhone 14 Pro' will deviate significantly from Apple's current design philosophy. So we created exclusive renders to show what could be next.
Apple updates the iPhone over multi-year design cycles with minor changes each year. However, it is rumored that the “iPhone 14 Pro” may skip the standard and introduce several design changes in one go.
The iPhone 12 introduced the current flat-side design paradigm, and the iPhone 13 improved it with a huge bump for the camera. Typically, Apple releases an “iPhone 14″ with few cosmetic changes or no external changes, reserving a new design or form factor for the “iPhone 15”.
Rumors about Apple abandoning its tick-tock-tock cycle started early on. Supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo was among the first to suggest a holeshot camera in a March 2021 report.
In September 2021, a famous leaker named Jon Prosser shared what he thought the “iPhone 14″ would look like just before the iPhone 13 was announced. The renders depicted a device with flat sides, but no device bump photo, without notch and with volume buttons similar to those of the iPhone 4.
As if Prosser's renders were a signal for the rumor mill, other known leakers immediately added their reports. Ross Young, a display supply chain analyst, said Apple will move the True Depth matrix for Face ID behind the display and use a punch-hole camera. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman announced that a complete design overhaul was planned for the next iPhone, and that the iPhone mini would be dropped from the lineup.
Related to this article:AirPods: Apple envisions potential "health companion" for these famous wireless headphonesIn December, The Elec claims that the new hole-punch camera is reserved for "pro" models of the iPhone and that standard models will retain the notch. Kuo offered another report in December on the "iPhone 14" as well, but he focused on the camera capabilities, not the design.
Kuo's claims that Apple will move to larger sensors with 48MP image capture run counter to Prosser's claim about reducing the camera bump. Cameras are physical devices that need space to function properly, and Apple already had to significantly increase the size of the camera bump in the iPhone 13 generation.
To significantly reduce the camera bump, Apple would have to modify the camera system or use new technology. It is not yet clear how this design change may be physically possible.