Apple’s flagship 2022 iPhone will have a punch hole camera cutout, reports the noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of TF International Securities. The company will remove the big notch present on the current generation iPhones. It will reportedly only be the “Pro” models at first but the other models could also follow soon.
The current frontal design of the iPhone was first introduced in 2017 with the iPhone X. It was the year when Apple moved away from the traditional home button to an all-screen design. Since then, all the flagship iPhones have had the same notch on the front which takes up a lot of screen real estate.
Notch not needed anymore
While most people have gotten used to the notch on the iPhone, it continues to be slightly annoying when checking for notifications. The notch leaves very little space for the notification icons from apps and other important icons such as network, WiFi, and more. Also, the notch takes up a good portion of video content when playing in full-screen.
Apple is also expected to include in-screen fingerprints on future iPhones. Some reports suggest the return of TouchID as early as 2021, however it could also be pushed to 2022, so as to release the feature alongside the redesigned front of the iPhone. The punch hole redesign of the iPhone could possibly mean that the iPhone will not FaceID.
The flagship iPhones of 2021 are expected to feature new 120Hz high-refresh rate displays. Other smartphone makers have been using high-refresh rate displays on their phones for a year or two now. Apple will reportedly join the other players this year by offering high-refresh rate displays.
Some reports have also suggested that Apple is toying with the idea of releasing a portless iPhone. Such an iPhone will only charge wirelessly – pushing the company’s MagSafe charging technology.