Apple iPhone 8 To Feature Original iPhone ‘Water Drop Design,’ Larger 5.8-Inch Display

A new report fresh from South Korea is claiming that industry sources have information regarding the design and some hardware features of the upcoming iPhone 8. The 10th anniversary iPhone is said to come with a very familiar form factor because it will be paying tribute to the original iPhone that the late Steve Jobs introduced back in 2007.

Korean language news site ETNews reported Monday that the Cupertino giant is getting inspiration for the design of the new iPhone from the smartphones it introduced from 2007 to 2009 or from the original iPhone to the iPhone 3GS. The form factor of the first three iPhones was known to be the “water drop design” because the devices looked like they were dripping water droplets when placed upside down. This is due to the fact that they were made to have a slightly rounded design at the back and a flat facade.

To re-implement the iconic design, Samsung’s biggest rival is reportedly making use of a 3D glass material for the back of the iPhone 8, so that it would resemble the deep curves or the slightly rounded appearance of the first iPhone. Industry sources said the curves on the edges of the new iPhone would be “more gentle and rounded” than the edges found on the metal cases for the existing iPhones. To complete the look, Apple is going for a relatively flat display and not something similar to the curved display of the Galaxy edge series in spite of now adopting organic light emitting diode or OLED displays.

This new information somehow agrees and it also disagrees with previous rumors about the iPhone 8. However, MacRumors pointed out that most reports about the next-generation iPhone are pointing to a 2.5D display design that has a similar curve as the one found on the current iPhone 7. The display is believed to be edge-to-edge, making no room for bezels.

In addition, there is little information about the back design of the next iPhone. The only information previous reports have leaked suggest that Apple is ditching aluminum for glass to implement an all-glass body design for the iPhone 8. With this new report from Korea saying the same thing, it is now very likely that Apple’s 2017 iPhone could launch with a glass body — a major step-up from the original iPhone.

Another area that would obviously separate the iPhone 8 from the first-generation iPhone is the size. ETNews sources claimed that though the new iPhone could pay homage to the design of the first-ever iPhone, they would be very different because of the larger 5.8-inch display of the former. Moreover, the original iPhone was a bit bulky despite its smaller size. The Cupertino giant is said to be going for a much thinner body for the next iPhone, but it wasn’t indicated how thin it would be compared to the iPhone 7.