While we’re still a good ten months away from the iPhone 15 release, that hasn’t stopped reports, news, and rumors from emerging over the last few weeks. From talks of a curved rear design and dual front-facing cameras to a next-generation camera system unlike any iPhone yet.

Remember that rumors about the next iPhone surface every year, and we never really know what to expect until the release draws closer. That said, everything we’re hearing so far suggests the new iPhone 15 Pro could have some stunning new design decisions.

Last week, rumors emerged from an Apple supplier suggesting the Cupertino company would ditch all the buttons on the iPhone 15 and instead use solid-state haptics as buttons. Then, a report from Forbes suggests that Apple will finally ditch the squared design. If so, we’re looking at rounded edges similar to the iPhone 5C back in 2013. That leak states that Apple could use upgraded materials like Titanium on Pro models.

There’s also a good chance Apple could finally kill the lightning port. It’ll do that by switching to USB-C or going for a port-free design with wireless charging taking center stage, thanks to MagSafe.

Apple could potentially ditch the buttons and ports all at once, but that’s doubtful and would be a significant change for its loyal customers, not to mention alienating a lot of accessories that rely on the lightning cable.

According to Nikkei Asia, a components manufacturer, Apple may deliver a massive camera upgrade and employ new state-of-the-art camera sensors from Sony in upcoming iPhone models. And while we don’t have too many details yet, the report talks about a change similar to Sony’s impressive new stacked CMOS sensors that debuted in late 2021.

“The stacked CMOS sensor adopts a stacked structure consisting of a pixel chip made up of back-illuminated pixels stacked atop a logic chip where signal processing circuits are formed. Within the pixel chip, photodiodes for converting light to electrical signals and pixel transistors for controlling the signals are situated alongside each other on the same layer.”

The technology could allow for vastly improved low-light photography performance, not to mention better light-gathering in general, delivering better images and video. Then, pair that with Apple’s Bionic chipset and image processing, and we could be in for a substantial upgrade.

Rumors are all over the place right now, and it’s hard to put everything into focus this early. Furthermore, several leaksters suggest that many of these changes could only apply to the iPhone 15 Pro line to differentiate it from the more affordable base iPhone 15.

If Apple manages to make one or two of these changes at once, it’d be a big shift for the smartphone, and all of them simultaneously would be an even bigger deal. For now, we’ll have to wait and see.

via XDA Developers