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Which feature do you want to see on the iPhone 7?

Which feature do you want to see on the iPhone 7?

Which feature do you want to see on the iPhone 7?
29 January 2016

A bigger screen?

A laser keyboard?

A hoverboard mode?

From industry speculation to our own general wish list, we've compiled the features we'd like to see on Apple's iPhone 7 - and we want to know which you're most eager to see become reality.

Scroll through the gallery and let us know in the poll below...

Wireless charging

Already a standard feature on several new Android handsets, Apple could soon join the wireless charging crowd.

Bloomberg has news that Apple is working on a new form of wireless charging that would allow their devices to charge more efficiently - and at a greater distance - than existing wireless chargers. 

Their reports point to an arrival of the tech in 2017 - but previous reports have suggested that this year's iPhone 7 could ship with some form of wireless charge capability.


Hi-Res audio as standard

Apple-obsessed tech blog MacOtakara recently declared that Apple was considering dropping the 3.5mm headphone jack from the iPhone 7, switching audio output to the Lightning cable output and shaving 1mm from the overall thickness of the phone.

While many iPhone users would kick up a righteous fuss over having to by an adaptor or new Lightning cable headphones, it would give Apple the significant boast of providing hi-res audio as standard, via the Lightning port.


Three iPhone 7 options

At present, Apple offers three builds of the iPhone: the iPhone 6, 6S and the oft forgotten 5S. While an older, smaller model, they're still selling new handsets with the latest iOS software.

Many are taking this as a precedent for Apple releasing three handset options: a large 7S, medium 7 and new 'small' 7C option. 

Chinese publication Economic Daily News has that display manufacturer AU Optronics has already been signed on to create the 4-inch screens for the new smaller model - which may be called the iPhone 7C.

The 7C could cut back on features, dropping the 3D touch screen in order to carry a slimmer, smaller build.


No home button

They break, they take up room, they collect grime after you've had a packet of Monster Munch - the home button is our least favourite aspect of Apple's otherwise perfect handset, and we'd like to see it go.

The likes of Google's Nexus 6P gets around the issue by moving the fingerprint scanner to the rear of the handset, freeing up room for more screen.

With the inclusion of a more advanced 3D Touch screen, the iPhone 7 might not even need a home button - leading to the possibility of a true edge-to-edge screen. That would get us excited.


A waterproof iPhone

Waterproof Android phones are becoming increasingly ubiquitous, saving many users from hungover agony as they realise they managed to drop their phone in a glass of water (again).

So it's about time Apple fell in line. We're envisaging iPhone 7 adverts with a barrel of floating handsets for an "Apple Bobbing" contest, laughing millennials flicking their damp locks out of their faces as they giggle their way through a moving selfie, before driving off into the Californian sunshine.

We should have become advertisers...


Edge-to-edge screen

There are no rumours for this one - no leaks, no deals, no photos taken in dimly lit factories. It's just something we want.

The iPhone form factor hasn't taken any great leaps forward in recent years, having a preference for slow, gradual changes rather than anything too bold.

We say: mix it up. Release something special. Give us a screen that fills the phone, making every other handset on the market look dated and inferior. 


4K display

Apple has always sought to provide incredible screens - but if they're going to want to reclaim the "best in class" title, they'll need to compete with a series of new 4K handsets populating tech shelves.


VR capacities

Another interesting possibility presented by high-quality 4K displays is incorporating handsets into VR goggles - something Samsung is blazing a trail with.

As Apple continue to make noises about VR experiments, we wouldn't be surprised if they look to corner a number of new virtual reality content makers for a considerable exclusive iTunes offering, launching an Apple-made phone headset.

VR is set to go big in 2016, and this could be an easy way for Apple to keep up.


3D camera

Earlier this year, Apple bought out LinX Imaging - a company specialising tiny 3D camera sensors, perfect for 3D scans and facial recognition. 

This presents a variety of interesting options: 3D images captured from the rear camera, facial recognition for phone security from the front-facing camera, photos on a par with SLR cameras (or so they claim). 

The most realistic selfies of your life could be one handset away.


A bigger, better battery

And not just better - but rocking a newer version of the iOS that uses less battery power.

This one's a shade more obvious than others: Apple's handsets will always come with a new iOS, and incremental battery improvements are standard practice across the phone industry.

But an oft-voiced complaint is that smartphone batteries just don't last the distance any more, draining the wrong side of 24 hours.

Number one on our wishlist of iPhone 7 improvements would be a battery that could support all the new features Apple makes its adverts about, and has a battery that lasts more than a day.

You've got the power to make it happen, Apple.