Apple’s Accidental Leak ‘Confirms’ iPhone 8 Design

Apple AAPL +1.42%’s HomePod accident delivered a mother lode of iPhone 8 information. The company’s own code verified two exclusives (1, 2) I published last month and now in conjunction with this I can confirm the iPhone 8’s production-ready final design…

Following on from my renders last month, I have been able to obtain a prototype of Apple’s finalised iPhone 8 design. Unlike a number of dummy units which have surfaced in recent months, this is not a crude slab but a highly detailed model constructed with premium materials and operational power, volume and mute buttons.

This is the iPhone design Apple is currently putting into mass production.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8 prototype (left) beside iPhone 7 (right)

So what do we learn from my prototype? In short: the leaked schematics were spot on. The iPhone 8 is indeed slightly larger than the iPhone 7, but noticeably smaller than the iPhone 7 Plus and it feels great in hand. It is similar to the Galaxy S8 in look and feel (which is a good thing) and it should be relatively easy for most owners to use one handed.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8’s cut-out ‘notch’ can clearly be seen in the top bezel

The massive 5.8-inch edge-to-edge is also going to look stunning in the final release, though how the ‘cut-out’ notch in the top bezel – housing the front facing camera and sensors – will be designed around in software is open to dispute. I have some tip-offs here, but nothing rock solid. That said I do believe the notch will ‘square off’ (be blacked out) when viewing video to create a straight vertical image along the top bezel.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8 vertical dual camera will protrude significantly

And speaking of vertical, yes the rear dual cameras are vertically aligned as widely tipped. This is partially to aid augmented reality (which it is frequently viewed in landscape mode) and partially as I believe the circuitry of the iPhone 8 left Apple with little choice, though expect it to be marketed as the former.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8 (top) has a much larger power button than the iPhone 7 (bottom), but why remains a mystery

In February I also exclusively revealed fast charging is coming to the iPhone 8. That remains correct and it will be joined by wireless charging (though the wireless charger will be an – expensive – optional extra) and the headphone jack will not be returning – something I saw coming in 2014.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8 (left) switches to a glass back for wireless charging

For the record I also understand almost every point of the Bloomberg/Kuo iPhone 8 25 feature leak is indeed correct. These two sources have been on fire.

Adding to my confidence are my good contacts at MobileFun which have supplied me with Olixar’s commercially ready iPhone 8 cases. These are the real deal. I tried its Crystal Clear, Wallet and FlexiShield cases and each fits perfectly around my prototype unit. I’ve taken several images to demonstrate the precision of these finishes above and below – Apple’s partners are all on the same page.

Gordon Kelly

iPhone 8 prototype inside an Olixar wallet production case

As for my iPhone 8 concerns, these are less to do with the hardware and more to do with the supply chain itself. The same leaky supply chain which has provided me with so much information throughout the year is also consistently reporting drastic stock shortages at launch and a major price increase.