Gwyn D'Mello
New Delhi: Apple Inc is preparing for a major iPhone redesigning not earlier than 2017 that would put the iconic Home button part of history, according to rumours doing the round.
According to a report by Apple Insider, where an unnamed (but supposedly reliable) source was quoted, Apple is looking to get rid of the Home button on its iPhone, but not anytime before 2017.
The lack of a button would allow it to make lighter devices with better screen to body ratios. That same sourec source said, however, that the company is looking to retain its Touch ID fingerprint scanner, which presents its own set of challenges. An additional rumour doing the rounds, is that Apple is trying to mend that problem by researching touch-integrated display drivers, that would allow the phone's display itself to act as a fingerprint scanner.
However, this seems like a cost prohibitive measure, meaning that in the time it takes Apple to develop and then implement said technology, it might just be scrapped altogether. Not to mention that the smartphone market doesn't remain stagnant for very long.
But another issue that crops up, even if Apple were to ditch the Home button AND Touch ID (which is unlikely) is how users will be able to access the iOS app switcher. Having a slide up/slide down menu is a possibility, though is removes the very ease-of-use functionality that makes the iPhone popular. Another option is to integrate multitouch, and Force Touch, from the Apple Watch and current gen MacBooks, into the iPhone. Essentially, that would have you, for instance, swiping right with two fingers to access the home screen, swipe left with two fingers to access Siri, and hold onthe bottom of the dissplay to access the appp switcher, though all of that sounds very cumbersome.
Even if these rumours hold water, you can bet we won't see any of them in iPhones for a while; Apple is going to have to think long and hard about how it can slash the home button withut alienating its fan base.
