7 iPhone 15 Rumors I Tom's Guide

Tom's Guide

From USB-C connectivity and a new A17 Bionic chip to design changes and major camera upgrades, these are the biggest iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro rumors so far.

Transcript

00:00 The new iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro

00:02 are set to arrive this fall, but what should you expect?

00:04 We could finally see Apple embrace USB-C across the board,

00:08 bring its dynamic island to the regular models,

00:10 and make the Pros super Pro with a titanium design

00:13 and the camera upgrade many have been waiting for.

00:16 I've been covering iPhone launches since the original,

00:19 and I'm going to break down

00:20 the seven biggest iPhone 15 rumors and leaks

00:23 so far that you need to know.

00:25 Apple is basically embracing USB-C on the iPhone

00:28 against its will due to EU regulations,

00:30 but I'm still glad to see the company catch up

00:32 to Android phones with this key feature.

00:34 The Lightning connector is just too slow

00:36 and simply not as reliable as USB-C over time.

00:40 So the hope is that we'll see both faster transfer speeds

00:43 to PCs and from cameras, as well as faster charging.

00:46 So the good news is that Lightning should be dead.

00:49 The bad news is that Apple is rumored to offer

00:51 faster transfer speeds on the Pro models,

00:54 so the regular iPhones could get screwed.

00:57 Plus, there's been a few reports that Apple may require

00:59 made-for-iPhone certification from accessory makers

01:03 so that the company can make money off the open standard,

01:06 but regulators are already sounding the alarm

01:09 that a move like this would be illegal.

01:12 The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus missed out

01:15 on one of the most innovative design and UI elements

01:17 of the iPhone 14 Pro series, the dynamic island.

01:20 But it looks like Apple is rectifying that

01:22 for the new iPhone, as both the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus

01:26 are tipped to feature Apple's dynamic island feature.

01:29 In case you haven't been following,

01:30 the dynamic island is a replacement for the notch

01:33 and delivers alerts and live updates

01:36 towards the top of the display.

01:37 So you could do things like see your next turn at a glance

01:41 while getting directions, see music playback,

01:43 check the status of your lift ride, or see sports scores,

01:47 all without having to dive into an app.

01:49 We're hoping a lot more developers jump on board this year

01:52 to add more functionality to the feature.

01:55 This is one of several features that will likely be reserved

01:58 for the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max,

02:00 but the rumored A17 Bionic chip should be a pretty big deal,

02:04 and that's because it's likely going to be

02:06 the world's first three nanometer chip inside a phone.

02:09 In fact, Apple has allegedly gobbled up 100% of the supply,

02:13 at least for this year.

02:14 Because the A17 will squeeze even more transistors

02:17 into the same amount of space,

02:19 you should expect blazing performance.

02:21 And the leaked Geekbench numbers for the A17 chip,

02:24 if legit, blow away the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

02:27 Plus, the three nanometer process

02:29 should make the iPhone 15 Pros more efficient

02:31 and last even longer on a charge.

02:34 Okay, here's another perk

02:35 that's likely to be Pro only this year.

02:37 The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max

02:39 could both feature titanium alloy frames,

02:42 moving on from the stainless steel from previous models.

02:45 The benefit is that titanium is stronger and lighter

02:47 than both aluminum and steel,

02:49 so you should get a design that's tougher,

02:51 but easier on your pocket.

02:52 We've also seen several rumors

02:54 that the iPhone 15 Pro edges will be more rounded,

02:57 making them comfier to hold.

02:58 Earlier, iPhone 15 Pro rumors said

03:01 that Apple was potentially ditching mechanical buttons

03:03 for things like the volume keys for solid state buttons

03:07 that are more durable.

03:08 They wouldn't physically depress,

03:09 but they would feel like they do thanks to haptic feedback.

03:12 This could result in a more durable design

03:14 because less moving parts,

03:15 but two analysts now say this rumor is shut down,

03:18 at least until 2024.

03:20 Apple may be adopting Sony's latest state-of-the-art

03:23 image sensors for the iPhone 15.

03:25 The report from Nikkei says,

03:26 "Sony's new image sensor

03:28 roughly doubles the saturation signal level in each pixel

03:31 compared with conventional sensors."

03:33 In other words, the sensors can capture more light

03:36 and reduce overexposure or underexposure

03:39 in certain settings,

03:40 enabling a smartphone camera

03:42 to clearly photograph a person's face,

03:44 even if the subject is standing against a strong backlight.

03:47 In our camera testing,

03:49 we found that the iPhone 14 Pro

03:50 could sometimes overexpose faces in direct sunlight

03:53 compared to, say, the Pixel 7 Pro,

03:55 so we're hoping for more consistent results

03:57 from the iPhone 15 lineup.

03:59 We've also heard that the regular iPhone 15 series

04:01 could get the 48-megapixel main camera

04:04 from the iPhone 14 Pro lineup,

04:06 although ProRAW shooting

04:07 may remain an iPhone 15 Pro exclusive.

04:10 The iPhone 15 Pro Max could be in a class of its own

04:13 if this rumor is true.

04:14 Apple's highest-end flagship

04:16 will reportedly boast the first periscope zoom lens

04:18 on an iPhone,

04:19 enabling a much more powerful optical zoom

04:22 than the current Max of 3X.

04:23 The new zoom will allegedly go up to 6X optical,

04:26 though the digital zoom remains unclear.

04:29 Unfortunately, the regular iPhone 15 Pro

04:31 will likely be stuck at 3X,

04:33 and the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus

04:36 may forego a telephoto lens again,

04:38 and that sucks for a $799 phone.

04:41 As with every new iPhone release,

04:42 there's been plenty of speculation

04:44 over the new iPhone 15 colors,

04:45 and so far, we've heard that the iPhone 15 Pro

04:48 and Pro Max will come in a new red shade.

04:51 The regular iPhone 15 may come in the usual colors,

04:54 but may also get new pink and blue options.

04:57 That's just a quick tour

04:58 through the biggest iPhone 15 rumors so far,

05:00 and it really looks like this could be the year to go Pro,

05:03 so long as there isn't a major price hike.

05:05 In the meantime, let me know what you're hoping to see

05:08 from Apple's next iPhone.

05:09 We're tracking all the biggest rumors on tomsguide.com,

05:13 but you can also see what we're up to on social

05:15 @tomsguide on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.

05:19 For Tom's Guide, this is Mark Spunauer.

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