A new report from Bloomberg today sheds more light on what to expect from this year’s iPhone update. The report states that Apple is not “planning big changes” for the 2021 iPhone, but that a key upgrade is being tested: a fingerprint reader on the screen.
Internal, Bloomberg Apple’s engineers refer to the iPhone 2021 as an ‘S’ year upgrade, which implies minor upgrades compared to the iPhone 12.
Apple is not planning major changes to this year’s iPhone line, given the improvements the smartphone made in 2020, including 5G and new designs, according to people familiar with the situation. Within Apple, engineers consider the following iPhones to be another “S” version of the device, the name usually given to new iPhones with minor upgrades.
The big change, though, is that Apple is testing the support for an on-screen fingerprint reader for this year’s iPhone. Ultimately, it’s unclear whether the feature will make the cut for the iPhone 12S, but this is something to test:
Although overall changes will be minor, Apple is still testing a key upgrade for 2021: a fingerprint reader on the screen. This would add a new method for users to unlock their iPhone, beyond a password and Face ID face recognition. Apple began moving away from fingerprint sensors in 2017 with the launch of the iPhone X, but Touch ID has since remained a feature on Mac laptops and cheaper iPhones. Qualcomm Inc., which supplies Apple with 5G modems, announced a faster on-screen fingerprint sensor earlier this month.
This is not the first we have heard about Touch ID returning to the iPhone. The trusted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo announced in August 2019 that he will be releasing an iPhone with both Face ID and Touch ID under the screen in 2021. In addition, the trusted leak L0vetodream also reported that Touch ID on the screen will soon be released. way to the iPhone.
Finally, Bloomberg writes that Apple “has discussed removing the charging port for some iPhone models in favor of wireless charging.” Again, it is unclear whether this change will move to the iPhone 12S or whether Apple will save it for a future model. It is noteworthy that in 2019, Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that Apple would launch an iPhone without a Lightning port in 2021.
The report also mentions that AirTags is still on track to be released sometime this year, with Apple originally planning to launch it with the iPhone 12.
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