Apple's next-generation iPhone 6 will reportedly boast NFC, wireless charging, an improved 4G antenna and a much larger screen, according to a new report.
The iPhone 6 is definitely one of the most highly-anticipated devices of 2014, and is expected to make its debut this fall. With the new iteration, Apple will finally take the step toward bigger screens, moving up from the 4-inch display found on current iPhones. A bigger screen is not the only exciting feature the new iPhone will have to offer, as it will run the newly-unveiled iOS 8 and come packed with other neat goodies as well.
According to a new report from VentureBeat, citing a "source close to the situation," the new iPhone is nearing completion and is now undergoing tests for durability, speed, network performance, and others such.
NFC
While NFC has become quite a popular feature for high-end smartphones nowadays, Apple has so far stayed away from it. As VentureBeat points out, the company wanted to include an NFC radio even in its iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, but ultimately canceled such plans because the mobile payments ecosystem was not mature enough.
That has changed in the meantime, and Apple's upcoming iPhone 6 will reportedly be NFC-enabled, enabling mobile payments in a similar way to Google Wallet on Android phones.
"We're unclear if Apple has aligned itself with the ISIS wireless payments standard, which is backed by a consortium of credit card companies and banks. It is more likely that Apple will go with its own mobile payments standard, which will compete with both ISIS and Google Wallet," VentureBeat reports.
Better 4G LTE
The current iPhone flagship comes with a Cat. 4 LTE radio, which can hit connection speeds of up to 150 megabits per second (mbps). The next-generation iPhone 6, meanwhile, will boast a much speedier Cat. 6 LTE radio, which can achieve double speeds of up to 300 mbps, according to VentureBeat's source. This new and improved radio is not yet LTE Advanced, but is reportedly seen as an interim step toward the new wireless standard.
Wireless Charging
The new iPhone 6 will reportedly come with wireless charging capabilities, sporting a surface under the shell which will be able to connect to an inductive charging surface for energy transfer.
Larger display
As previously mentioned, the iPhone 6 is widely expected to finally boast a bigger display. Recent rumors have suggested that it will come in two large-screen models, one with a 4.7-inch display and another with a massive 5.5-inch screen.
The new VentureBeat report further reveals that the "significantly larger screen" will take up more space on the front of the phone, which suggests that it will have a smaller hardware border around the screen compared to previous iPhone iterations. The larger displays will likely get new scratch-resistant covering as well.
