Apple iPhone 15 Leaks – Latest News | Everything We Know So Far
We’re now less than two months away from the unveiling (and potential release) of Apple’s upcoming iPhone 15 lineup, which is expected to be announced during Apple’s Fall Event, presumed to be held around the second week of September 2023.
Now, as we get closer to the announcement of Apple’s new iPhone 15 lineup, rumors and leaks about the company’s future lineup of flagship phones are starting to flood the internet. However, with slightly less than two months to go until the expected unveiling of Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup, there still isn’t much information that’s known or confirmed.
Nevertheless, we’ve compiled all the important information regarding Apple’s upcoming iPhone 15 lineup, including its expected launch date, as well as rumored design changes, technical specifications, and estimated price tags for each phone from Apple’s soon-to-be-released iPhone 15 lineup, which will give iPhone users a clearer picture of what to expect from Apple’s next generation of iPhones.
DESIGN & SPECS
Starting with the dimensions of each iPhone 15 model, it’s expected that each smartphone from Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup will be of a similar size to the iPhone 14 series.
According to a recent post by The Indian Express, experts believe that the iPhone 15 lineup will supposedly include two 6.1-inch and two 6.7-inch iPhone 15 models. The regular iPhone 15 models will include a 6.1-inch iPhone 15 and a 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Plus, while the iPhone 15 Pro series will include a 6.1-inch iPhone 15 Pro and a 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Pro Max.
This has been suggested by YouTube channel zollotech, who recently had the opportunity to check out design samples for each iPhone 15 smartphone model on a recent video they published on May 24, 2023.
The same post by The Indian Express also suggests that there is a possibility that Apple will use a titanium frame specifically for iPhone 15 Pro series in order to make both the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max lighter and also sturdier, as this material is significantly lighter and more durable than both stainless steel and aluminum.
Moving on to the different components that integrate each iPhone 15 model. Starting with each phone’s display screen, a recent post by Macworld suggests that all iPhone 15 models are expected to come equipped with an OLED display.
Still, it’s important to note that while all smartphone models from Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup will be reusing the same OLED material set manufactured by Samsung and known as M12 (the same one that was used for the iPhone 14 Pro series), a post by AppleInsider claims that the non-iPhone 15 Pro models are thought to use low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) thin-film transistors (TFT), a low-technical difficulty technology, while the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models will use low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) TFT instead, which is a harder to produce version.
This essentially means that Apple’s standard iPhone 15 models (meaning the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus) will not be equipped with an LPTO display (as confirmed by MacRumors), suggesting that the devices will continue to lack support to ProMotion (an adaptive high refresh rate display technology that offers fast refresh rates ranging from 1Hz up to 120Hz, with lower rates used for static content and higher rates reserved for higher graphical-demanding Apps such as mobile games and high-resolution videos for fluid scrolling, greater responsiveness, and a smoother and more responsive viewing experience). The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus models will also lack an always-on display option like Apple’s iPhone Pro models typically have.
Nevertheless, all iPhone 15 models will still integrate a more power-efficient 28nm OLED display driver chip that’s manufactured based on a 28nm process, which, in comparison to the 40nm chips that come integrated on the iPhone 14 models, provide a reduced power consumption, thus contributing to a longer battery life for iPhone 15 models.
Moreover, an article published by MacRumors (which refers to a tweet by Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo), states that all iPhone 15 models will also include Apple’s Dynamic Island in order to unify the pill and hole cutouts at the top of each phone’s display, resembling a hole punch arrangement similar to what we see on most Android phones, for which Apple not only fully embraced the void created by the holes in the screen, but also made them an integral part of the interface in the current version of its iOS 16 Operative System.
Apple’s new Dynamic Island punch-hole arrangement will also include the phone’s proximity sensor (specifically a 940nm wavelength proximity sensor in comparison to the 1380nm used on the iPhone 14 Pro), which is responsible for detecting when a user holds the phone up to their ear and automatically shut off the screen in order to save on battery power.
In regards to the processor integrated in each iPhone 15 model, a post by MacRumors suggests that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are expected to have an A16 Bionic chip, while the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models are expected to come equipped with Apple’s next-generation A17 Bionic chip, manufactured based on TSMC’s 3nm process for continued performance and efficiency improvements.
For the remaining hardware specs of each iPhone 15 model, a post by PhoneArena suggests that Apple has been equipping all iPhone models with 128GB of storage as a baseline, but this might change when the company launches its upcoming iPhone 15 lineup.
For now, it is thought that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will have three (x3) storage capacity options of 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB, while the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models will have three (x3) slightly higher storage capacity options of 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB.
Then, for their RAM memory specs, it is thought that the next-generation iPhone 15 series will feature RAM improvements, according to a new report from Taiwanese research firm TrendForce, which states that “Apple will bump up the capacity and specifications” of RAM for iPhone 15 models, meaning there could be improvements to both RAM amounts and processing speeds across the iPhone 15 lineup, but no specific details were provided.
Based on this report, experts assume that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will likely remain at 6GB of RAM, but it’s still possible that these models end up getting upgraded to have a faster LPDDR5 RAM (as iPhone 14 Pro models were last year), while iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models would likely be equipped with 8GB of RAM (in comparison to the 6GB of RAM offered by the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max models). Together with the rumored A17 Bionic chip for iPhone 15 Pro models, this improvement in RAM would help to boost overall performance.
Lastly, for its Operative System, it’s expected that Apple will release an update for its current Operative System, the iOS 16, meaning that all iPhone 15 models will most likely come running on iOS 17, which is currently in Beta (according to a post by Macworld), and is expected to be fully released in September 2023, probably shortly after Apple’s Fall Event.
CAMERAS
In terms of the camera setup for Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup, it’s expected that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 models will have a standard wide and an ultrawide camera, while the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models will integrate a 12MP telephoto camera (the same 12MP camera with 3x zoom found in the iPhone 14 Pro).
Some experts in the Apple leaks community believe that the iPhone 15 will have the same big 48MP wide-angle camera as the iPhone 14 Pro, which could be a really strong reason to not purchase either model from the iPhone 15 Pro series (i.e. the 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max).
However, the non-Pro iPhone 15 models will probably not support the ProRAW format (which has been the case so far with Apple’s previous iPhone lineups), which is particularly required to capture full-sized 48MP photos–in standard HEIF or JPG formats, meaning you’ll only be able to get 12MP photos at best.
In spite of that, the iPhone 15 Pro will surely have a telephoto camera that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone Plus models won’t have.
In case you’re looking at a larger phone, a recent post by Tom’s Guide suggests that the iPhone 15 Pro Max might feature a new periscope telephoto lens camera that will boast an optical zoom of 5x or 6x, and also a digital zoom of at least 20X, both of which are substantially better than the zooming options offered by the iPhone 14 Pro.
Lastly, both iPhone Pro models might also come equipped with a LiDAR sensor, which is used for improving focus and portrait mode in dark environments, and also used for Augmented Reality (AR) Apps. Plus, that same LiDAR sensor might also be useful when the Apple Vision Pro (i.e. Apple’s upcoming mixed-reality headset) ships next year.
INTERFACE
In respect to interface changes for Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup, is it rumored that Apple will finally be replacing the mute switch, which has been present since the original iPhone, with a programmable multi-functional button that’s rumored to be called the “Action button”, which would perform different functions depending on how you’re using your iPhone, such as muting or unmuting your iPhone when having it locked.
There’s really no reason that the iPhone’s currently existing mute switch needs to work as a toggle switch rather than a multi-functional button, which obviously provides users with much more flexibility.
CONNECTIVITY
As to the wired connectivity method offered by Apple’s upcoming iPhone 15 lineup, a recent post by Forbes confirms that every iPhone 15 model will transition from having a Lightning port to a USB-C connection port, as the European Union’s new laws now require it on all future products. These rumors suggest that users can expect USB 2.0 data transfer speeds on the regular iPhone 15 (480 Mbits per second, just like the data transfer speeds offered by Apple’s Lightning), while the iPhone 15 Pro will get USB 3.2 or Thunderbolt 3 support, giving it data transfer speeds of up to 20 or 40 Gbits per second.
In regard to the iPhone 15 lineup’s wireless connectivity methods, it’s also thought that all four iPhone 15 models will support Bluetooth 5.3.
Furthermore, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, all iPhone 15 models will support Wi-Fi 6E, which not only works on 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, but also works over the 6GHz band, allowing for faster wireless speeds, lower latency, and less signal interference.
BATTERY & BATTERY LIFE
According to a Weibo report from an alleged Foxconn source (via IT Home’s website), every iPhone 15 model will come equipped a bigger battery with reasonably higher battery capacities (in comparison to their predecessor iPhone 14 models) when they’re supposed to be launching later in September, which are believed to go as follows:
- iPhone 15: a 3,877mAh battery
- iPhone 15 Plus: a 4,912mAh battery
- iPhone 15 Pro: a 3,650mAh battery
- iPhone 15 Pro Max: a 4,852mAh battery
It also looks like Apple’s new iPhone 15 lineup will also have more incremental battery improvements. According to renowned Twitter Android leaker, RGcloudS, Apple might be using a stacked battery design for the iPhone 15, which, as the name suggests, works by stacking together multiple battery cell sheets, which could allow for bigger battery capacities.
The same Twitter user, RGcloudS, also believes that that the transition to stacked batteries may also bring faster charging, for which they said to have seen “40W wired & 20W MagSafe” wireless charging, which, according to that Twitter user, works via a “new protocol & power chip”, but this stacked battery design option could end up being delayed to the release of the iPhone 16 lineup.
This design option would roughly double the current wired and wireless iPhone charging speeds, for which the iPhone 14 Pro models top off at around 27W, while MagSafe is limited to 15W only.
PRICING & AVAILABILITY
Once again, Apple’s soon-to-be-released iPhone 15 line will include the iPhone 15, the iPhone 15 Plus, the iPhone 15 Pro, and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
For now, the expected pricing options for each iPhone 15 model are believed to be set at a similar price-tag of the current iPhone 14 models. The expected price-tags for the iPhone 15 are as follows:
- standard iPhone 15 – starting at at $800 (or $850 if there’s a price increase)
- iPhone 15 Plus – starting at $900 (or $950 in the case of a price increase)
- iPhone 15 Pro – $1099 for 256GB / $1299 for 512GB / $1499 for 1TB
- iPhone 15 Pro Max – $1199 for 256GB / $1399 for 512GB / $1599 for 1TB
In comparison to Apple’s current iPhone 14 lineup, prices for the higher-end iPhone 15 Pro models (the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max) could potentially jump by $100, with some rumors even suggesting that the largest Pro model could end up being rebranded as the “iPhone 15 Ultra”, which could potentially then have an even higher price increase.
Finally, there are also some early rumors regarding the color options for Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup, for which all iPhone 15 models will have a glossy finish.
The current rumors claim there will be a total of six (x6) color options for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, which will include Apple’s Product RED, Midnight, and Starlight, plus Green (either Cyan Green or Mint Green), Light Yellow, and Pink as 3 new colors.
The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are expected to come in four (x4) color options, including Space Black, Silver, Gold, and a new Dark Red color option that could potentially be replacing the Deep Purple color which was the signature color for the iPhone 14 Pro series.
