A slew of brand new reports has now claimed that Apple's upcoming flagship smartphone, the iPhone 8, may be coming with a sort-of new connector that will not only charge the device but also allow it to connect to other accessories. Apple is rumored to be updating their existing Smart Connector and integrating it into its upcoming new flagship.
The technology already exists
Apple previously debuted its magnetic Smart Connector on the 12.9-inch iPad Pro tablet back in 2015. The connector allowed for a wireless connection between different peripherals, but it was mostly just used to connect to the company's new Apple iPad Pro keyboard.
Interestingly, there are ways to charge the device using the Smart Connector and data is apparently able to pass through the connections as well. However, the exact amount of data it can transmit and receive was not specified.
Why the need to change
Apple has always been leaning towards a design that will be free of ports and wires altogether. This move is made apparent by their recent removal of several ports, including the highly-contested removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack. Apple has also been dishing out entirely wireless accessories like the recently released AirPods. Given this trend, it would make sense for the company to fully remove the Lightning Port as well to complete the overall wireless design.
Will the technology work
The company's magnetic Smart Connector has its advantages and disadvantages. Charging and using the smartphone might become an issue when the phone needs to be moved around a lot. It is also safe to assume that there might be some data issues with using the new magnetic connector as opposed to using the tried and tested Lightning connector.
Latest iPhone 8 Rumors
This year's iPhone is expected to be coming in three distinct flavors, namely a standard iPhone 7s, a large screen iPhone 7s Plus, and a high-end iPhone Edition variant. The latter is expected to sport a 5.8-inch OLED panel, which will mark Apple's jump into OLED technology. Other planned features include the complete removal of the home button and a new type of facial recognition system to unlock the phone.
As it stands, most of the reports remain to be just mere rumors for now. Apple has not yet confirmed or announced anything official about the iPhone 8, which is why all of the reports regarding the upcoming flagship remain to be just speculations.
