Apple's new flagships, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models, have just been released. But right now, there are already rumors on the upcoming technology that the iPhone 8 will be having as the company's flagship phone for its 10th anniversary in 2017. Apple already ditched the headphone jack for the iPhone 7. Will it ditch the iconic Home Button with the iPhone 8 as well?
iPhone 8's Home Button is no more
One of the most useful features of the iPhones is the Home Button. It became an icon for Apple's iPhone ever since the flagship was first launched in 2007. Before, the Home Button is just used to go directly to the Home screen, but Apple improved the Home Button and used it to accommodate more functions. For that reason, it is one part of the iPhone that suffers from the most abuse. Sooner or later, users find their Home Button useless which can be a source of problem for iPhone users.
No more design issues
To remedy this problem, Apple might decide to ditch the Home Button completely and do with a full-screen face with an edge-to-edge OLED display. Apple already filed and was awarded the patent for a "capacitive fingerprint sensor including an electrostatic lens." With this patent, the next iPhone 8 will no longer need a dedicated button. Instead, the whole screen display can be used for authentication using a user's fingerprints. The added technology of electrostatic lens will make fingerprint reading much better compared to older models of iPhones.
By removing the Home Button, Apple will no longer have design issues with their next smarthphones. Engineers can redesign the iPhone 8 without worrying about the Home Button or increasing the handset size to accommodate design modifications. Still, it remains to be seen whether or not Apple is going to use the new patent on the upcoming iPhone 8 next year.
