Apple’s 2017 iPhone Rumored To Arrive Sans A Home Button, Bezels Due To Edge-To-Edge OLED Display

Amid numerous reports focused on teasing and building up the hype over Apple’s upcoming iPhone 7 handsets, there are also reports that concentrate on dropping hints on what’s to come for the 10th anniversary iPhone that is bound to be released in 2017. Just this Thursday, a new report claiming that a major change on the device’s hardware should be expected from the 2017 iPhone surfaced online.

The new report, which comes from Bloomberg, states that the Cupertino giant is already working on the 2017 iPhone with a major redesign in mind. Citing an unnamed source with knowledge on Apple’s plan for next year’s iPhone, the report goes on to claim that the major redesign involves the removal of the Home button, a hardware feature that has been with Apple’s smartphone since its first generation release.

Bloomberg’s report actually focused more on a rumored new feature that would enable iPhone users in Japan to use their handsets in paying for mass-transit rides. Still, it did not miss the chance to divulge the planned redesign of the 2017 iPhone.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that a source has come out to claim that the 10th anniversary iPhone will eliminate the Home button. MacRumors reports that earlier rumors about next year’s iteration have already asserted that Apple is looking to overhaul the design of the upcoming iPhone, such that the Home button will be removed to make way for the edge-to-edge flexible OLED display that will completely wrap the front of the device, leaving no room for bezels even on the top and the bottom of the display.

Since the Home button will be eliminated from the device, its functionality and its Touch ID technology will be incorporated directly to the display panel that is said to be very similar to the one the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge sports. Furthermore, the handset’s body is rumored to be made of glass instead of aluminum.

MacRumors also notes that there are also rumors claiming that the 2017 iPhone will be packed with advanced features, like wireless charging, iris scanning technology and an enhanced Taptic engine, among many others.

The news about the major redesign of the 2017 iPhone comes amid the skyrocketing anticipation for the public unveiling of the iPhone 7 handsets on Sept. 7 and their official release on Sept. 16. It is worth noting that while the 10th anniversary iPhone is rumored to be a major upgrade, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are expected to be minor upgrades of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus sans the headphone jack.