Changes are afoot for the iPhone 8, if the latest reports out of Taiwan are accurate. The change, in this case, could be related to the material being used to construct the iPhone 8’s chassis. The aluminium frame that we’ve become so accustomed to might be swapped out for forged stainless steel, according to reports.
This info comes by way of DigiTimes, which cites Taiwanese sources as saying that Apple has switched from usual supplier Foxconn to Jabil, another manufacturer that has worked with Apple in the past. The switch could see the iPhone toting a stainless steel (albeit of a very specific type) frame, something that hasn’t happened since the iPhone 4s.
The company switched from a stainless steel alloy to aluminium for the launch of the iPhone 5 and the material has accompanied iPhones and the Apple Watch ever since. A move back would support rumours that Apple is going to a mostly-glass handset for 2017 and the reported forging method for the chassis would allow for many of this year’s rumoured design tweaks.
Change is what we’ve been expecting from the iPhone’s tenth outing but it’s worth noting that DigiTimes has a spotty record when it comes to Apple information so take this report with a pinch of salt.
If we thought that the company was sentimental it would be conceivable that Apple might introduce an anniversary edition smartphone for the iPhone’s tenth anniversary, along the lines of the original design for the handset. The company isn’t fond of looking back, or even making sure that older devices stick around all that long, so we don’t see them taking this route. Unless we’ve severely misjudged something, that is.
Source: DigiTimes via Apple Insider
