iPhone 13 Everything we know
As the launch date nears, here’s what you can expect
The next iPhone is only a few short months away, but we may already know a thing or two about what to expect. Here, we have collated together all the key news and rumours.
We should probably start with the name, as this is a little contentious. According to Taiwan’s Economic Daily News (EDN), the next iPhone will be dubbed the iPhone 13. There has been plenty of speculation that Apple might instead opt to call the device the iPhone 12s, apparently to allay the worries of superstitious users, but those claims now look to be in doubt. The EDN report also noted Apple will release four variants with the same screen sizes as the current iPhone 12 range. That means a 5.4-inch iPhone 13 mini, 6.1-inch iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro models, and a 6.7-inch iPhone 13 Pro Max.
What about rumours that the iPhone mini is on the way out? Well, those look to be partially true, although it will have one last swansong in the iPhone 13 range. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the iPhone 14 range, however, will omit an iPhone 14 mini model and replace it with an iPhone 14 Max, with the same features of the iPhone 14 but in a larger size.
While the display sizes are likely to remain the same this year, the devices might get slightly thicker. Japanese site Mac Otakara believes we could see a jump of around
0.26mm, plus a slight weight increase thanks to larger batteries.
Longer-lasting performance
Apple’s device chips are the best in the industry, and it’s a dead cert that the iPhone 13 will get an improved chip, probably named the A15. This is expected to use a tweaked 5nm (nanometre) process to boost performance.
Elsewhere, the built-in magnets used for MagSafe could be increased in size to improve charging or perhaps facilitate reverse wireless charging (where the iPhone charges other devices inductively), although that is unlikely to occur this year.
We do expect to see larger batteries, improved 5G performance and the introduction of Wi-Fi 6E, though, based on numerous rumours and sources.
Other improvements
Plenty of changes could be coming to the camera systems, on both the
Pro and non-Pro versions. Leaker EverythingApplePro has claimed to have received official CAD renders of the upcoming phones, and these show a much larger camera array than on existing models (something possibly confirmed by leaked third-party iPhone case designs).
Rumours have been floating around that Apple is planning to increase the sensor size and bring sensor-shift image stabilisation to the Wide and Ultra Wide cameras on both the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max (currently it only exists on the iPhone 12 Pro Max’s wide camera).
On the front, the notch at the top of the iPhone will likely see some changes too. According to various sources and leakers, the notch is expected to shrink down in size, in part by moving the earpiece higher up into the iPhone’s bezel. That is good news if you find the notch to be a little intrusive.
As for the display, Apple could finally introduce the 120Hz ProMotion tech that has been rumoured for so long. This offers much smoother scrolling than Apple’s standard device screens, and made its debut in the 2017 iPad Pro but has not yet made the jump to any other devices. This year, that could change.
Lots of changes, then, but expect an evolution rather than revolution of the iPhone line this year.