14 DAY TRIAL // Apple might be working on its very own hybrid device powered by iOS, as the company is exploring new product categories to expand beyond the traditional phone and laptop form factors.
A report from 9to5mac indicates that a new Apple device, codenamed Star and having model name N84, might actually be the very first notebook powered by iOS, and there are signs that this may be a direction that the Cupertino-based tech giant could be heading towards on the long term.
By the looks of things, Apple has already built several prototypes of this mysterious device, and some are currently being tested behind the closed doors by its very own employees in Cupertino. At the same time, the cited source says these early units were made by Pegatron, also in charge of iPhone manufacturing, and the first models came out of the assembly lines in January this year.
iOS laptop or low-cost iPhone?
Apple is using EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) as the booting system, just like on the Mac, and this is believed to be a sign that the company might be trying to build a new laptop powered by ARM chips.
Additionally, “the new device is classified as a brand-new device family and runs a derivative of iOS,” which again seems to indicate that Apple could invest into a new project like an iOS laptop.
On the other hand, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who has a good track on Apple scoops, says N84 is the codename of Apple’s low-cost LCD iPhone coming later this year. Apple is working on a trio of iPhone models for the 2018 generation, including a direct successor to the iPhone X, a Plus-sized iPhone X with a 6.5-inch display, and a more affordable LCD iPhone model with a 6.1-inch screen.
It remains to be seen if this is indeed the low-cost iPhone or Apple is exploring new form factors for its device lineup, but the company is likely to be planning bigger hardware changes anyway, including making its own processors for the Mac by 2020.