Apple iOS 7, iPhone 5S And iPhone 6 Reveal Coming Sept. 10, And We Called It First

Over the weekend, AllThingsD said Apple will reveal the successor to the iPhone 5 at a media event held on Sept. 10. But while AllThingsD has a superb track record with reports related to Apple and its product unveilings, The Loop’s Jim Dalrymple, who has 100 percent accuracy with confirming or refuting Apple rumors with his signature one-word posts, all but confirmed the AllThingsD report on Monday with a simple “Yep.” Recently, Dalrymple had rejected a different report saying the iPhone would launch on Sept. 6 with a clear “Nope.”

AllThingsD may have launched an armada of iPhone-related stories with its single report, but we were actually the first news company to predict the Sept. 10 reveal date. On June 29, after explaining the math and methodology behind Apple and its various product launches and release dates, we explained why we believed Apple would formally introduce iOS 7 and at least one new iPhone on Tuesday, Sept. 10, since Apple always unveils its new iPhone hardware and software at an event that takes place one week earlier.

After the Sept. 10 event, we predicted Apple would release iOS 7 on Sept. 18 -- exactly 100 days after its June 10 unveiling date at WWDC. In 2012, iOS 6 was introduced June 11 and saw its release date on Sept. 19, exactly 100 days after its unveiling. We don't think Tim Cook would mess with the successful Apple formula left behind by Steve Jobs, which is why we believed Apple would again follow this iOS release date timetable by launching iOS 7 exactly 100 days after its introduction, on Sept. 18.

As for the new iPhones, we expected Apple to release the iPhone 5S just two days after the release date for iOS 7, on Sept. 20; however, given the possible delayed release of the iPhone 5S due to supply issues with the phone’s fingerprint sensor, we now believe Apple will release the budget iPhone 6 on Sept. 20, even though both phones will be unveiled at the same Sept. 10 event. For the iPhone 5S, Apple may wait a week or two to release its high-end iPhone 5 follow-up, most likely on Sept. 27. The only reason for splitting the release dates of its two iPhones would be to prevent major crowds at its retail stores, especially considering Apple reportedly plans to release two new iPhone models and a new full-size iPad, which will all be unveiled on Sept. 10 alongside iOS 7.

Apple iOS 7 Release Coming: What To Expect

For those unversed in the newest mobile operating system from Apple, iOS 7 features a complete revamp of the style, colors, icons and textures of iOS to make it a familiar but entirely new experience. But iOS 7 isn’t just a cosmetic update; iOS 7 offers game-changing new features and tools to make iOS 7 the most intuitive and most useful iOS release to date. Most notable among the new iOS 7 features: the helpful Control Center that contains quick access to important settings; the built-in parallax that shifts the background image in response to one’s movements; a new way to multitask apps; the AirDrop feature for sharing photos or documents with other iPhone users in the area; and much more.

For more on iOS 7, check out our visual guide on iOS 7 to learn more about the new design, some surprise features we discovered in the very first iOS 7 beta, plus our collection of 80-plus screenshots of iOS 7.

Apple iPhone 6 Release Coming: What To Expect

The iPhone 6 is expected to release with many of the same features of the iPhone 5, but the key difference is said to be the form factor, which has reportedly replaced the anodized aluminum body of the iPhone 5 with a cheaper, albeit sturdier and more scratch-proof, polycarbonate shell. Back in January, iLounge editor-in-chief Jeremy Horwitz said the iPhone 6 will release as a "cross between the iPhone 5, the fifth-generation iPod touch and -- wait for it -- the iPod classic." With its 4-inch screen like the iPhone 5, a tapered bottom like the latest iPod touch and a rectangular shape like the iPod classic, the budget iPhone 6 is said to be substantially made from plastic but feature a hybrid chassis made of both plastic and metal. The right side of the iPhone 6 features a flat, centered SIM card tray like the iPhone 5, with the locations of the camera, microphone and rear flash located similarly to where they were on the latest-generation iPod touch.

We believe Apple will release the iPhone 6 with most of the same specs as the iPhone 5, including a 4-inch Retina display at 326 ppi, an A6 chip, a FaceTime HD camera and an 8-megapixel rear side camera; the 8-megapixel camera has already shown up in allegedly leaked photos of the iPhone 6 components. The major difference between the iPhone 5 and iPhone 6, besides the new polycarbonate enclosure, will be its availability in five different colors (red, green, yellow, blue and white), as opposed to the iPhone 5's two black and white options.

Apple iPhone 5S Release Coming: What To Expect

The iPhone 5S is said to look much like last year’s iPhone 5, but with a number of enhanced specs and new features for the camera and home button. In late June, Apple rumors site MacRumors posted alleged photos of the alleged iPhone 5S, which revealed a nameless Apple-built CPU that appears to be a new A7 chip rather than a modification of the A6 chip currently featured in the iPhone 5. The iPhone 5S logic board is slightly narrower than the iPhone 5’s logic board in order to make room for new components and connectors, and the 5.45 Whr lithium-ion polymer battery in the iPhone 5 also looks to be upgraded to a 3.8-volt battery with a capacity of 5.92 Whr in the iPhone 5S.

Apple has reportedly made some major enhancements to the camera in the iPhone 5S. Whereas the iPhone 5 featured an 8-megapixel camera with a singular circular flash module, rumors point to a new 12-megapixel rear side camera in the iPhone 5S, and photos also revealed a new pill-shaped dual-LED flash. Both of these new camera features in the iPhone 5S may be key to the inclusion of a new feature called "Mogul," which was discovered in code embedded within the latest beta release of iOS 7. But since the new "Mogul" feature won't activate on the iPhone 5 due to "unsupported hardware," it looks like Mogul will be an exclusive feature of the iPhone 5S in the same way Siri was previously exclusive to the iPhone 4S.

The iPhone 5S “Mogul” feature, according to 9to5Mac’s “analysis and testing of the code,” will allow the iPhone 5S to capture video at “an exceptionally fast and precise rate,” indicating a potential recording rate of 120 frames-per-second. With such a fast frame rate, it seems like the Mogul feature in the iPhone 5S will support slow-motion video, since slow-motion effects require frames to be captured at a fast rate that appear slowed down when the video is replayed at a standard speed. With a presumably enhanced camera -- the iPhone hasn’t received a camera upgrade since the release of the iPhone 4S -- this additional Mogul feature should give the iPhone 5S the “cool factor” it desperately needs when it sees its release date next month.

Mogul won’t be the only “cool factor” in the iPhone 5S, however; the showstopper of the iPhone 5S is said to be its fingerprint sensor, which is the technology that caused Apple to urgently acquire Florida-based AuthenTec last July. At just 3mm high and 1.3mm thick, AuthenTec's first Smart Sensor, which was announced in May (right around the time Apple upped its efforts to buy the company) crams a 500 ppi, 192x8 pixel detection matrix and all the fingerprint matching technology necessary to accurately and securely detect and encrypt data about your finger. Furthermore, AuthenTec's "anti-spoofing technology" ensures that only real fingerprints are read by measuring the unique properties of the skin on your finger and translating those traits into digital data that's then compared with the "expected [fingerprint] properties." Many believe Apple’s plan is to release the iPhone 5S with the Smart Sensor embedded directly in the iPhone’s signature home button.

The fingerprint sensor may allow the iPhone 5S to automatically authenticate one’s identity, possibly negating the need to input personal data on one’s phone again and again, or even the need to remember a passcode combination. Patently Apple offers a fantastic description of how this biometric fingerprint technology in the iPhone 5S could enhance iPhone activities like e-commerce.

What do you think of iOS 7, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 5S? Are you looking forward to their collective release dates next month? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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