Apple wins patent for wildest iPhone design you’ll ever see

Meet the iPhone of the (possible) future. Patently Apple notices that Apple has won a patent for a radical new iPhone design that imagines a wraparound bezel-free display that also eliminates the traditional physical home button that has been a staple of the iPhone ever since its launch in 2007. The casing for the new iPhone design is also a major departure from the traditional iPhone as it looks much more like a fourth-generation iPod nano than any other smartphone Apple has ever released.

In its patent filing, Apple envisions that the new iPhone’s curved display will be made from flexible material that can present “an illusion of depth perception” capable of “mimicking a 3D experience.” Apple also says that users would be able to control the volume on the phone “by holding a finger over the volume indicator” and “expanding the volume control over the entire left side of the device,” thus eliminating any need for a volume button. Patently Apple adds that “Apple’s patent also notes that the advanced iPhone design may contain several cameras and use facial recognition.”

While we’re unlikely to see this iPhone design used in the iPhone 6 or really any other iPhone over the next couple years, it does seem like something Apple might release in the future once flexible display technology matures. This patent filing first cropped up a year ago so it’s definitely something that Apple has had on its mind for a long time now.

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Apple's Best Fortune Tellers See Bigger iPhones (And Much More) For 2014

With last week’s iPhone launch behind it, and next week’s iPad announcement ahead, 2013 product introductions are basically a wrap for Apple. While we still await the final details of the newest iPads — a slimmer full-size model, a Retina screen on the Mini — and perhaps updated Macbook Pros, the company is already onto next year’s products. And if the pros at DisplaySearch and KGI Securities are to believed, those include a larger screen iPhone (at last?) and a long-awaited update to the Macbook Air, with a Retina screen of its own. But there is apparently more on tap, including possibly a cheaper desktop iMac, a larger 13-inch iPad, Apple’s long-awaited televisions, and the much-discussed smartwatch. These could be the catalysts to reignite slowed growth at the company.
Many are quick to dismiss the rumor mill — and with good reason. Anyone with a website and an idea can post, “Apple to release really cool gadget next year with features I want.” But some sources are better than others. David Hsieh of DisplaySearch is on such source and KGI Securities anaylst Ming-Chi Kuo is another. One of their secrets is that Apple can’t introduce a product at all without acquiring literally millions of parts and getting them into their supply chain to make their product launches possible. I’ve discussed this before, but it’s worth reiterating: Just because the Nexus 7 has a Retina-quality display (and it’s a nice one, I can say from experience) doesn’t mean the iPad Mini could have had one 6 months ago. For all Google/Asus’ success with their tablet, Apple sells millions more.
To do a Retina Mini, Apple needs to have acquired 10 million screens before shipping a single unit and to be certain that it could obtain 10 million more each subsequent quarter. The way it does that is through a series of supplier agreements with display makers that are negotiated far in advance and often lead to dedicated production of Apple specified screens for its products. Hsieh, who has been in the business for a long time, talks to everyone, tries to figure out who is making what for Apple, and then attempts to discern how it relates to future products. From that, he’s produced a “best guess” a the 2014 product line.