iPhone 13 will probably bring a new Touch ID under the display

After the iPhone is before the iPhone. In September 2021 Apple will bring a new model onto the market again – the device will probably be called the iPhone 13. There are even initial indications of how it could be equipped. TECHNOLOGY BUTTON summarizes the rumors surrounding the iPhone 13.

Whatever the name of the upcoming iPhone, we already know some details about the possible features. The following information has not yet been confirmed at this point in time and should therefore be taken with a bit of caution.

However, we expect that Apple will largely maintain the division of its large smartphone series this year – provided that it is popular with buyers and finds appropriate sales. This means that we can expect an iPhone 13, a 13 mini, 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max in September 2021. There will also be an iPhone SE 3, about which some details are already known . However, contrary to original expectations, Apple will not present this this spring, but rather a year later.

Current rumors

Corona also has an impact on the use of smartphones. Unlocking the face is not that easy with a mask, for example, which poses problems for iPhone users in particular. Because unlike many Android smartphones, Apple phones have been able to manage without a fingerprint sensor since 2017 when the iPhone X was launched. This may change with the iPhone 13, as the analysts from Barclays Research report.

There has been speculation about a possible return of Touch ID in the iPhone for some time. So far, some market observers have assumed that the use of a fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 13 would mean the return of a home button at the same time. Especially since, according to Apple analyst Kuo, the home button would simplify user guidance. Such a design change is extremely unlikely, especially since there is a much more modern alternative to integrate Touch ID in the iPhone 13. This would come in the form of a fingerprint sensor under the display. Here, too, the Android division has long been a pioneer.

With the sensor integrated under the glass, the iPhone 13 can also be conveniently unlocked when users are wearing a mask or are not looking directly at the device, which can be useful in some situations. Touch ID would be particularly secure if Apple were to use an ultrasonic sensor. These are safer than optical sensors, but so far less widespread.

All previous information about the iPhone 13

Design

Apple rarely changes the design of its iPhones. Since the iPhone 12 has only just introduced a new look, it is unlikely that Apple will make any major changes to the design of the iPhone 13. A few small, targeted changes in the appearance – for example in the camera arrangement – would be possible. On the whole, the look of the new models will probably be quite similar to that of the current generation.

Some time ago the Japanese website “ Mac Otakara“Speculated that the iPhone 13 should be 0.26 millimeters thicker than the iPhone 12. The website explained the increase on the one hand with a larger battery with more capacity. However, additional technology for new functions would also be possible. The Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also expects the iPhone 13 to have a more powerful battery. Unlike Mac Otakara, however, he does not expect smartphones to become thicker as a result. Rather, he spoke in his current statement of a new and space-saving battery design that Apple is apparently working on. This would allow a battery with more capacity to be installed without increasing the thickness of the housing. Nevertheless, he mentions a small disadvantage of the new battery design: The iPhone 13 is likely to be a little heavier than previous models.

The new iPhones should also be more robust. Apple protects not only the camera lenses, but the entire camera cover with sapphire glass. Due to its high degree of hardness, it is considered to be significantly more resistant than normal glass. Apple is already using it in the iPhone 6 and later generations, as well as in its Apple Watch. However, some testers found that the sapphire crystal used by Apple did not quite meet the advertised hardness properties, which was apparently due to impurities in the glass. Hopefully Apple will use sapphire glass made of aluminum and oxide in the appropriate proportions in the iPhone 13 and dispense with additives such as carbon.

Display

For some time, there has been speculation that Apple will improve the display of the iPhone 13 again. The LTPO displays (Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide) are considered to be the hottest trend in smartphone displays this year. They not only enable the dynamic change of the image frequency between 10 Hz and 120 Hz, they also allow an always-on display, as is typical of OLEDs. Both of these – i.e. 120 Hz and always-on – have so far been missing from Apple’s iPhones. That should change this year.

For the first time there will be such an always-on display on the iPhone. However, it is probably a bit more rudimentary than that of the Android competition. As Weinbach reports, the display can hardly be configured and only shows the most important data – battery level, time and date. Basically, it corresponds to a stripped-down lockscreen.

Also read: All data and facts about the Apple iPhone 12

Processor

A new iPhone always heralds a new generation of processors. We expect the Apple A15 Bionic in the iPhone 13. It is probably manufactured in a more advanced version of the 5 nanometer process and is therefore not only energy-saving, it also promises a little more performance than the A14 Bionic. According to a report, this is the N5P process or 5nm + process from TSMC.

Apple has already equipped the iPhone 12 series with 5G. As a result, users do not have to do without the fast cellular standard with the successor. According to DigiTimes, the basis for 5G is different here. Instead of the X55 module from Qualcomm, Apple should use the newer version Snapdragon X60. The recently introduced and again faster Snapdragon X65, on the other hand, will be used in the iPhone 14 at the earliest, so the assumption is.

But what does the change of the 5G module mean for users of the iPhone 13? Unlike the X55, the X60 is not manufactured in the 7 nanometer process, but in 5 nm. As a result, the operation of the module is more energy efficient overall, which in turn benefits the battery life. The iPhones can then also use 5G data from mmWave and sub-6 GHz bands at the same time, resulting in faster speeds and lower latency when surfing.

Links

In addition to 5G, the new iPhone should also support a new WLAN technology. According to some analysts from the well-known analysis company Barclays (via MacRumors ), the iPhone 13 transmits via Wifi 6E. The standard was only adopted in the USA at the end of 2020 and is also used in the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra , for example .

Wifi 6E is a further development of Wifi 6, which is only gradually finding its way into Germany – also and above all because of new routers that support the standard. Wifi 6E offers the features and capabilities of Wifi 6, including higher performance, lower latency, and faster data rates, extended to the 6 GHz band. The additional spectrum offers much more freedom than the existing 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz WLAN, which results in increased bandwidth and less interference for devices that support the standard.

Also read: What is Wi-Fi 6 and do I need it now?

Storage versions

Apple offers its iPhone 12 models with a choice of 128 GB, 256 GB and 512 GB of storage. Then it’s over. It is different with the iPhone 13, where, according to the latest information, users can choose an additional memory size. We’re talking about 1 terabyte (TB) – the largest storage capacity Apple would offer to date.

So far, the 1TB memory can only be found in the iPad Pro. With the iPhones, 512 GB was the limit. Since Apple does not offer any option to expand this outside of the cloud, particularly intensive iPhone users could sometimes reach the limit. The large storage version is now intended for precisely this customer group, although it will probably remain a niche product. Apple usually pays for the extra storage well, so the iPhone 13 with 1 TB will be particularly expensive.

Camera

We are also talking about two modes, some of which we have been waiting for a long time. On the one hand, this is the astrophotography mode known from Google Pixel smartphones, which is supposed to switch on automatically as soon as users take a photo or film the night sky. On the other hand, there is talk of a portrait video mode. It should complement the already known portrait modes for photos. So far, however, the performance of the iPhones has not been sufficient to correctly calculate the bokeh effect in videos. The A15 Bionic, which we expect in the iPhone 13, can now apparently deliver the necessary performance. With the portrait video mode, people could be recorded and the background displayed blurred. The adjustment of the depth of field can be changed subsequently and continuously.

All the rumors that Weinbach has currently circulated can be found in a video on YouTube compiled by EverythingApplePro EAP :

Is Apple canceling other accessories?

One of the not-so-happy announcements revolves around the accessories. With the iPhone 12, Apple has already done without a power supply unit. Now there are indications that the company is reducing the scope of delivery for the iPhone 13 even further and is also canceling the Lightning cable. For users, this would mean that they would not only have to buy the power supply, but also the Lightning-to-USB-C cable themselves if they no longer have their old accessories or if they sell them together with their old iPhone. The costs for this are not without. For the original cable, Apple itself charges 24.35 euros (1 meter) or 38 euros (2 meters).

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