On the 10th anniversary of the smartphone’s launch, Apple will release its iPhone 8 at an exclusive event at its “spaceship” campus in California.
More than a billion smartphones have been sold since Steve Jobs presented the first iPhone to the public on 9 January 2007.
The device would redefine the mobile phone and make Apple the most valuable company in the world.
Image: 9 January 2007: Steve Jobs introduces the first iPhone
The launch event for the iPhone 8 will be held in Cupertino, specifically in Apple’s new Steve Jobs Theatre, a subterranean stadium which reportedly seats only 1,000 people.
Apple’s devices usually go on sale a week after the launch event and the company predicted it would drive strong sales for the fourth quarter of up to $52bn (£40bn).
Leaks to retailers have suggested the phone will go on sale on Friday, 22 September.
Speculation regarding what the iPhone 8 is likely to include has at times been wild, but some rumours and leaks have more credence than others.
Here’s Sky News’ round-up of the most credible:
:: iOS 11
Image: Apple’s new 175-acre ‘spaceship’ campus in Cupertino, California
The iPhone 8 will certainly be arriving with Apple’s new mobile operating system iOS 11 which will include a feature to encourage safer driving by blocking notifications when the phone is connected to a car and in motion.
Secret 999 fingerprint dialling will also be available, but the stand-out feature is going to be Apple’s investments in augmented reality.
:: Wireless charging
No more cables and searching for free sockets – the iPhone 8 could feature wireless charging.
Wireless charging uses a pad which transmits power to the device using an electromagnetic field which the phone’s receiver coil can turn into charge.
Apple’s wireless charging technology however may be limited to 7.5 watts, half of the strength used in Samsung’s version of the technology.
:: Blush gold colour
The phone appears to only arrive in three colours, although others may be available later.
Images posted to Twitter by committed Apple leaker Benjamin Geskin:
White and black are classical style choices for the company, but a third colour – dubbed “Blush Gold” internally at the manufacturer Foxconn – has been leaked.
:: Edge-to-edge display
The iPhone 8 is rumoured to be the device which finally meets the ambitions of Sir Jony Ive, the design chief at Apple, to have an edge-to-edge display with the screen covering the entirety of the front of the phone.
Clues spotted in the code for Apple’s HomePod speaker suggest the phone will have a 5.8-inch edge-to-edge OLED display.
With a complete glass front, however, there will be no room for a home button.
Image: An invite being sent for the launch event
:: No home button
And ineed, the iPhone 8 may be set to do away with the home button.
A patent by the company allows its technology to embed Touch ID – it’s fingerprint recognition technology – in the screen.
This is likely to be used alongside Apple’s method to wake up the screen as soon as the phone is lifted from a static state.
Source: Sky