New Clues Revealed About iPhone 8 Display, Facial Recognition

For the better part of a year rumors have been swirling about the features and design of Apple’s yet-to-be launched iPhone 8. Speculation about the highly anticipated 10th Anniversary phone, which CEO Tim Cook blamed for the poor sales of the iPhone 7, may have reached peak levels this weekend after the tech giant accidentally pushed out firmware for its HomePod.

Apple has released the firmware that will power the HomePod smart speaker several months ahead of the device’s December launch. But, as MacRumors reports, that earlier update has unintentionally given the public a look at what we might see in the iPhone 8, which isn’t expected until September.

Facial Recognition

Among the details iOS developers claim to have discovered in the iOS 11.0.2 update is a reference to infrared face detection.

This, MacRumors notes, gives the impression that the new phone could rely on facial recognition in some capacity, such as for locking and unlocking the device.

Researches say that the BiometricKit framework included in the iOS contained a new “FaceDetect” method that detects when a person’s face is too close, too far from the camera, when there are too many faces in the camera, and other elements used for authentication.

Design & Look

The code also seems to confirm many of the previously rumored design elements of the iPhone 8. A photo of the likely device was found in the HomePod code under the area dealing with authentication for Apple Pay.

The simple depiction for “D22,” the possible codename for the iPhone 8, shows the full-frontal display of the device.

The photo suggests that the earpiece and sensor are still located in a notch at the top of the device, while there are no longer borders on the device, meaning the display reaches the edges of the phone.

Additionally, the phone doesn’t appear to have a home button anymore. This, again, suggests that Apple will use different means for locking and unlocking the device, such as the infrared facial recognition system mentioned above.

Previously, sources told Bloomberg that Apple was working to create a home button incorporated into the screen instead of a separate button below the display.

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist