Apple’s next iPhone will likely feature a thinner, waterproof body and other significant changes,reportsFast Company. Citing a source with knowledge of the company’s plans, the outlet says theiPhone 7will also feature wireless charging and special noise-canceling technology.
Additionally, Fast Company says the handset will ship without a 3.5mm headphone jack—something that has popped up in multiple iPhone 7 rumors. The move will allow Apple to make the device thinner, but will force users to switch to wireless or Lightning-enabled headphones.
Some media reports have suggested that Apple will include a set of Lightning-connected EarPod earphones in the box with the iPhone 7. It’s more likely, our source says, that Apple will sell a more expensive pair of noise-canceling, Lightning-connected, earphones or headphonesseparately—possibly under its Beats brand.
We’ve heard a lot of conflicting chatter on what audio accessory Apple could bundle with the iPhone 7 if it ends up shipping without a headphone jack. Arecent reportclaimed it would offer wireless earbuds with the handset, and another calls for a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapter.
Here are the details on the noise cancelling tech:
Apple is working with its longtime audio chip partner Cirrus Logic to adapt the audio chipset in the iPhone to work with the Lightning port, according to our source.
Our source adds that the audio system will also leverage a new noise-canceling technology from Wolfson Microelectronics—a U.K.-based audio tech company Cirrus acquired in 2014. The software will be baked into the phone and also into the headphones that will plug into it, and will help remove background noise in music playback and in phone calls, our source says.
Note that we are still several months away from iPhone 7 production, and the Fast Company author has amixed track recordin Apple intel, so take the above details with the usual pinch of salt. That being said, nothing laid out here seems far-fetched or beyond the realm of possibility.
