14 DAY TRIAL // The iPhone 7 might have the same design as its predecessor, but it appears that Apple is planning a complete overhaul for the next-year model, when the company is expected to go for an AMOLED display with a bezel-less design.
Recent reports have indicated that Apple might be in talks with Sharp over a possible deal that would have the latter manufacture OLED displays for the 2017 iPhone, which is very likely to launch as the iPhone 8. While details of the negotiations haven’t been provided, sources have indicated that talks already reached an advanced stage and the two are expected to come to an agreement very soon.
With this being told, Sharp could thus become the official manufacturer of iPhone 8 displays with no bezels, and the company might have just provided us with a glimpse into what this screen could look like.
The firm introduced at the CEATECH 2016 technology conference in Japan the so-called Sharp Corner R, a new concept phone that presents its new bezel-less displays expected to be featured on next-generation phones.
90 percent screen-to-body ratio
As you can see in the photos below, provided by GizmoChina, the Corner R has no top and side bezels, while the bottom part of the phone is dedicated to navigation controls that are specific to Android devices.
If this makes it to the iPhone, the screen obviously drops these controls, either for a smaller bezel or for the Home button - there are rumors that the 2018 iPhone could actually feature a fingerprint reader integrated into the display, but it remains to be seen if Apple wants to go forward with this plan given that it’s already discussing a deal with another screen manufacturer.
Other than that, this new concept seems to align with previous rumors pointing to a major redesign of the iPhone. The concept features a 5.2-inch screen (it surely needs other dimensions to fit the iPhone) and a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels. The screen accounts for 90 percent of the front-facing part of the phone, which is quite a major improvement from the current 65.6 screen-to-body ratio.
