Wondering what Apple’s next-gen iPhone will look like? Just yesterday we reported that the folks at 9to5 Mac were sent photos of the backplate component that allegedly belonged to the next-gen iPhone. Now it looks like they have been sent more photos of the component, this time in white which has been compared to the backplate in black which we covered yesterday. Upon first glance it appears that both are similar except for the color, although the white version seems to be missing the standard icons and text messages below.
What they do share in common is that a large portion of the backplate is made from metal. It is unclear as to what the metal plate is used for or if it is merely for aesthetic purposes. They have also noted that the antenna for the phone has been molded into the backplate itself, thus creating a unibody enclosure much like they did for the MacBook lineup. This would allow Apple to create devices that are thinner, lighter and stronger (although we still highly recommend against dropping it).
This would also allow Apple to use the extra space to squeeze in more components, like a larger battery which will be necessary if the next-gen iPhone were to be LTE capable, or maybe even better quality speakers which was one of the rumored features for the next-gen iPhone. The photos also confirm the smaller dock connector and it appears that the headphone jack has been moved to the bottom. So what do you guys think? Could this be for real?