Good news for those who hate surprises….Apple has only gone and leaked a some key specifications and features of the upcoming iPhone 8.
The new device is expected to be released in September and thanks to these recent leaks we now know it’ll have a bezel-less screen and a facial recognition system. This information was uncovered by the developer Guilherme Rambo, who started to look at the code once he noticed that the company had released firmware for the HomePod speaker that isn’t set for debut until December.
While looking through the firmware code, Rambo picked up information on the “iPhone 8” (as yet, we still don’t know if this will be its official name) and the document confirmed many of the rumors we’d already been expecting such as the slimmer bezel, removal of the home button and a face-recognition feature.
It seems that Apple weren’t quick enough to take down the accidental leak of the HomePod firmware, which appeared on an official Apple public update only a few days ago. Rambo was able to download the code before realizing that it runs on iOS 11.0.2, two patches ahead of what is available to the public right now. Of course, the iOS 11.0.2 firmare was not meant for public release therefore Apple did not deem it necessary to check it for mentions of the new iPhone.
An outline illustration embedded in the code shows that Apple has plans to replace the Touch ID fingerprint sensor and physical home button with a bezel-free design and the Face ID infrared scanner will unlock the phone with facial recognition.
A simple search for “Face ID” within the firmware allowed Rambo to find matches in the BiometricKit which is the framework that currently handles Touch ID. He then searched for “Pearl ID” to find the terms associated with registering a new fingerprint. These searches kept bringing up the term “Pearl-D22” which allowed him to find a graphics file that depicted a handset design that has not yet been released.
If this leak and the rumors are true, the lack of home button and slim-bezel will be the biggest design change in the iPhone for a number of years. However, there are already a number of devices on the market with features such as facial recognition (the Samsung Galaxy S8, for example) so this will only bring the iPhone 8 in line with other devices in the smartphone market.
