The latest rumors coming from China, where the next iPhone will be mass manufactured, indicated that the iPhone 7 on release date will include built-in support for dual-SIM and storage capacity of up to 256GB. Also, wholesale production has already commenced, pointing to the possibility of an earlier touchdown.
Citing recent posts on Weibo, China's biggest microblogging site, Engadget reported that the sequel to the iPhone 6S will have a feature unseen in previous iPhone models but has been widely popular with Android-powered devices. The report carried what appeared as images of dual-SIM trays that purportedly are designed for the 2016 iPhones.
If true, it will be the first for Apple's flagship phone and likely will be limited to select markets as the use of two SIMs at the same time is yet to gain traction in North America. Specific target of the rumored feature would be key Asian markets and the strongest candidate is China, where dual-SIM devices are hugely popular.
Using the same source, Engadget reported too that both the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus will be released in 256GB edition. The new information aligns with an earlier leak that claimed the next iPhone storage configurations will see major adjustments. Gone will be the 16GB basic storage and to be replaced by the 32GB model.
One scenario offered by analysts on the next iPhone memory upgrade is that the 236GB edition will join the lineup of 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. The alternative is the possible exit of the 64GB flavor to maintain the 3-model lineup of 32GB, 128GB and 256GB.
It should be noted, however, that Apple has yet to comment on the rumored feature upgrades for the 2016 iPhone refresh. And it has been the tech giant's attitude on all the other speculations concerning the next iPhone, which say that both the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus are mere reflections of the design first used with the iPhone 6.
Yet while build of the next iPhone will mostly mirror of the last two versions, the innards are expected to be boosted up by more powerful components with A10 processing chip as the headline hardware upgrade. Working in tandem is iOS 10 that Apple is scheduled to deploy between August and September 2016 or simultaneous with the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus release date.