Apple will be tight-lipped about its potential larger display, John Gruber points out

May 24, 2012 11:07 GMT  ·  By

Assuming, for the sake of argument, that all iPhone 5 screen rumors are true, Apple pundit John Gruber asks: “How might Apple get developers on the right track to support a new aspect ratio at WWDC next month while maintaining their standard radio silence regarding as-yet-unannounced products?”

Apple is said to be producing a next-generation iPhone with a display boasting an extra 176 pixels in height, changing the aspect ratio from 3:2 to 16:9.

The resolution would be capped at 1136 × 640, but the pixel density would remain at 326 ppi (pixels-per-inch), according to most reports on the matter quoting various Apple connects.

How will Apple keep all this away from the eyes of the public when it presents iOS 6 to developers next month?

The answer is simple, John Gruber asserts: Apple won’t do anything at all in this particular area.

“iOS 6 could be announced next month without Apple saying a word about supporting multiple aspect ratios. Then they could just announce the new iPhone in October and expect developers to get on board ASAP. Apple says ‘Jump’; iOS developers ask ‘How high?’,” Gruber writes on his blog, Daring Fireball.

Gruber, who is one well-connected pundit with a proven track record, believes Apple “could encourage iOS developers to adopt the recommended APIs to be responsive to changes in available vertical screen space.”

He explains: “For now, they could pitch this in the context of shrinking screen space in response to on-screen notification banners, but, come October, apps that do the right thing would automatically be responsive to, say, a new device with 176 more pixels.”

Although he admits the possibility of Apple releasing an iPhone with a bigger display, Gruber doesn’t see the handset itself getting any bigger: “just shrink the non-display areas on the front face,” he proposes.

Which is what Apple is likely to do, as many others have pointed out in the past.