Rumors coming from Asia are saying that Apple is planning to unbox three flagship smartphones as part of its iPhone 7 release date with a 5.8-inch model as the newest addition to the 2016 line up. The super-phablet iOS handset will be called iPhone Pro and will boast of a wraparound OLED display, reports said.
The Motley Fool reported this week the possibility of a supersized iPhone that will dwarf over the earlier models. It will be a few inches shy of becoming a six-incher at 5.8-inch and is destined as the biggest iPhone ever built if and when unpacked. The report pointed to Taiwan-based DigiTimes story as source.
The super-phablet iPhone Pro is supposedly slated to roll out over the next two years though the same Motley Fool has indicated the likelihood of an earlier launch. If the rumored device will become a reality soon enough, it could be part of the next-generation iPhones this 2016.
Or it will be the second-generation iPhone Pro that will debut in 2017 and likely the first to sport an OLED display. This early, Apple is supposedly in talks with OLED suppliers led by Samsung, LG and Japan Display for the materials that will be used on the supersized iPhone.
An upcoming iPhone with 5.8-inch OLED display, according to MacRumors, makes sense as the rumored model is actually supported by existing Apple patents. The iPhone switching from LCD to OLED will "offer better color accuracy, image contrast and screen uniformity," the report said.
But the enhancements do not stop there as Apple is also likely to employ an OLED variant that is flexible as well, which will open more possibilities as far as iPhone killer features are concerned. For one, an iPhone with OLED display will be more durable than its predecessors.
And certainly, the aesthetics will jump several notches higher for future iPhones as MacRumors speculated that with OLED becoming part of the Apple supply chain renders of iPhone will wraparound screen could soon become real, further enhancing what already were seen with the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and S7 Edge.
As for handset functionalities, an iPhone with wraparound display could serve as the vehicle for Apple to introduce virtual control keys, also supported by previously published Apple patents.
"Such a display (flexible OLED) would fully eliminate side bezels on the iPhone and would also perhaps implement special buttons or gestures that could be used to control functions on the iPhone using the sides of the device," MacRumors said.
But as it stands today, this next big iPhone remains a wildcard entry on the iPhone 7 release date that is expected to happen in September 2016, likely serving too as the fourth iPhone display flavor following the rumored intro of a 4-inch iPhone SE this March.