A group of Foxconn employees released on Reddit a treasure trove of information about upcoming Apple products for the remainder of 2018 through 2019. Some of this information is expected to be announced Monday, June 5 at WWDC, but there is information on other products, too. The details provided information on new MacBooks, iPhone X, updated iMac peripherals, and even the rumored Apple Glasses—all of them unannounced.
Reddit mods claim to have authenticated documents provided by the leakers, but that’s still far from being guaranteed accurate. If genuine, the information is most likely being shared in violation of NDAs. It’s further proof of our ongoing thesis that there are simply too many fingers and eyeballs involved in the production of Apple products for the company to keep many things secret.
The iPhone X
First let’s talk about the iPhone 8, iPhone X, or whatever it turns out to be named. The design is slated to look like the images below, and the device will have a Touch ID sensor below the glass.
According to the leakers, early testing found this sensor to be slow and sometimes unreliable. They claim the handset will rely on facial recognition technology for the primary means of authenticated access. The cameras will feature a 3-D sensor for advanced facial recognition.
The back of the device will be made of special glass engineered to sustain force without shattering. It will feature wireless charging and a fast-recharge Lightning port.
Project Mirrorshades — Apple Iris
Apple’s long-rumored Apple Glasses project, dubbed Project Mirrorshades, is looking less likely to come to light before 2019, according to the leakers. The final product is expected to be called Apple Iris, but the leakers claim a 65 percent probability of the project being cancelled. Apparently Hon Hai lost the contract, and the new supplier is not faring much better. If it comes to fruition, Apple Iris is expected to do for augmented reality what the iPhone did for smartphones.
The glasses are designed to allow for prescription lenses. At this stage, they also incorporate dual microphones for noise cancellation and an accelerometer. The devices also include a magnetometer for navigation.
The leakers claim that Apple Iris isn’t expected to ship until 2018 or 2019, assuming the project isn’t scrapped.
The Apple Home Speaker
Apple’s rumored home speaker is actually really a thing, and the leakers say it will be announced during WWDC. The actual ship date, however, is expected to be later in 2017. This is another case of Hon Hai’s Foxconn losing the contract to another vendor.
Three designs of the speaker were developed. One had a screen and camera, one lacked the screen, and the third lacked the camera. No word on which design was the final one, unfortunately.
More New Hardware
According to the leakers, iPhone 7S will switch to the same glass design as the iPhone X, but will lack camera recognition and have the regular Touch ID sensor. The iMac and MacBook Pro will get specification updates in 2017, which matches previous rumors.
In 2018, a new MacBook with smart “any key” technology will be unveiled, along with new peripherals for the iMac. The new keyboard will utilize e-ink and be instantly configurable as another type of keyboard, such as a European keyboard layout.
TMO will provide full coverage of the WWDC keynote on Monday. We will also update you if further developments from the Foxconn insiders cone to light.