Yes, we know, the iPhone X has barely even been on the market a month. But, once Apple debuts a new iPhone, the countdown begins for next September, and the rumors begin firing up. But the first set to arrive are some fairly credible reports that a cheaper, sturdier iPhone X is on the way.
According to BGR, the current round of reports, which come from the more reliable analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo, has Apple working on an 5.8 inch and 6.3 inch OLED iPhone X. That, in of itself, isn’t terribly surprising. It’s the iPhone X 2 (maybe XI? Who knows?) and the iPhone X 2 Plus, not exactly surprising. What is intriguing is that there’s a third iPhone in the works, with an LCD screen 6.1 inches in size, and a metal back. Interestingly, it’ll also have the edge-to-edge screen, which points to it also having Face ID, instead of Touch ID. The cheaper components point, almost with certainty, to Apple at least making an effort to engineer a cheaper phone to go along with what will no doubt be the at least slightly pricier new iPhone X line.
It makes sense that Apple would want a “budget” iPhone, but that it also has Face ID is a fairly intriguing bit. Apple reportedly struggled to get a fingerprint sensor under that edge-to-edge screen, and while it has, supposedly, a year or so to really figure that out, it might simply have given up for now in favor of making the iPhone X’s guts faster and finding new uses for Face ID beyond amusing Keith Olbermann with poop jokes. Apple’s been selling Face ID heavily, but it’s a situation where it looks like a solution in search of a problem, a dangerous place for any would-be tech innovation to be.
All this could change, of course. We’re ten months away from Apple’s inevitable next iPhone announcement. But it appears that no matter what, the iPhone rumor mill for 2018 is just getting started.
(via BGR)