Forget the iPhone 7, the iPhone 8 rumors have already arrived
On Friday, the world reached peak Apple excitement when the new iPhone 7 devices became available in stores. Now that is done, people have already moved on to the iPhone 8.
After Apple unleashed the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus -- with updated features like water-resistance, a new home button, camera improvements and no headphone jack -- to the public, the next logical step is for us to turn our focus to something newer and shinier.
Since 2017 will mark the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, people are anticipating that Apple will pull out all the stops with its next phone, which is yet to be officially named. Let the speculation begin.
Here are 6 of the most exciting iPhone 8 rumors out there:
1. All-glass iPhone
Apple Inc. filed a patent for a "glass enclosure" back on July 30, 2014, which was recently approved on Sept. 6, 2016, just one day before Apple's much-anticipated iPhone 7 event.
The patent defines the "glass enclosure" as a handheld computing device that would include an enclosure made from structural walls of transparent glass material that can be radio-transparent. The patent also states, "A laser frit bonding process may be used to hermetically seal the two glass members together to create a water resistant electronic device."
Back in May, a reliable Apple watcher, John Gruber, mentioned on his podcast The Talk Show that his sources believed the iPhone that followed the 7 would have an all-glass case (similar to the iPhone 4,) rather than the previously used aluminum.
In May, Nikkei reported that, CEO Allen Horng from Catcher Technology -- one of Apple's main iPhone casing suppliers -- said Apple plans to adopt a glass body for at least one iPhone model coming in 2016.
2. Edge-to-edge display
According to MacRumors, a complete redesign could be in store for the front of the iPhone come 2017.
It's believed the iPhone 8 will do away with one of the most consistent iPhone features: the top, bottom and side bezels, which house the home button, speaker and the front-facing camera. By doing so, Apple would achieve a new edge-to-edge phone display, potentially giving users a much broader phone screen to work with.
MacRumors suggested that this change could cause the Touch ID fingerprint scanner and the front-facing camera to be built directly into the screen's display, which means we could potentially be seeing an iPhone with no home button.
"The display itself is said to be flexible OLED rather than an LCD, allowing Apple to introduce a thinner device that consumes less power and offers a better display with higher contrast ratio and more true to life colors," MacRumors reports. "It may also feature edges that are curved on both sides."
3. 10-nanometer A11 chip
The iPhone has come a long way from the iPhone 6's formerly impressive A8 processor. The new iPhone 7 devices feature a very thin A10 Fusion chip, and according to MacRumors, the iPhone 8 models are expected to have 10-nanometer A11 chips which will improve speed once again.
The publication reported the phone could potentially, "... also include features like long-range wireless charging and biometric additions like iris or facial scanning."
4. Wireless charging
Since the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus devices no longer have headphone jacks, if you insert wired headphones into the Lightning port you won't be able to simultaneously charge your phone.
According to a new report from Bloomberg, the iPhone 8 is rumored to have the advanced ability to charge wirelessly, which would definitely solve this issue.
While some smartphones like Samsung's Galaxy S6 can be charged by sitting them on a charging pad, Apple's wireless charging technology would allow a device to be charged through the air.
5. A digital crown
Another intriguing iPhone 8 rumor is that the device could possibly include a digital crown (like the one on the Apple Watch).
Another Apple Inc. patent published by he United States Patent and Trademark Office shows that in 2014 the company filed for a digital crown for devices resembling iPhones and iPads.
In case you're having a hard time picturing how the Digital Crown feature would integrate with an iPhone, a 3D designer created a video to visually present the potential concept.
6. A ceramic iPhone?!
After the release of the Series 2 ceramic Apple Watch Edition this year, rumors of a ceramic iPhone have been circulating. Cult of Mac's Killian Bell said, "Being four times harder than steel … ceramic would be an ideal material for the next generation of iPhone unibodies.”
Apple has praised the new watch material as strong and less susceptible to scratches, so who knows what the company has in store for us.
Nicole is a Senior Editor at Mashable. She primarily covers entertainment and digital culture trends, and in her free time she can be found watching TV, sending voice notes, or going viral on Twitter for admiring knitwear. You can follow her on Twitter @nicolemichele5.
