It’s that time of year again. We’re around six weeks away from the official announcement of this year’s new iPhones, and though Apple likes to keep things under wraps as long as possible we already have a pretty good idea of what to expect in September.
Specifically, we’re expecting Apple to release three new iPhones this year, all styled like the iPhone X. A regular 5.8-inch version, a plus-sized 6.5-inch version, and “budget” 6.1-inch model made with cheaper components.
All three are due to ditch the Home button and incorporate Face ID, but the compromises made in the budget model have been less clear. Until now, that is, as photos showing “dummy models” of these devices have posted by notorious leaker Benjamin Geskin, spilling a few more beans. Dummy units are physical mockups based on blueprints leaked from manufacturers in the supply chain.
So what can we learn from these dummies? Well, the most obvious distinction is that the cheaper 6.1-inch device has a single lens, which means it won’t be capable of Portrait mode photography like its dual-lens brothers.
Besides that, it looks to have chunkier bezels around the edges of the screen and be made of slightly cheaper materials – such as aluminum instead of steel for the frame of the device. It’s also been understood for some time that this version of the iPhone will have a less impressive LED display, while the more expensive versions will use OLED displays.
It’s impossible to tell from these diagrams, but we’d also expect the 6.1-inch device to use slightly older internal components, so it may not be quite as snappy as the top-of-the-line models.
Whatever happens, it’s not long now until we’ll find out for sure.