iPhone 7 Plus Follow-up Images Reignite Smart Connector Rumors

Following yesterday's circulation of iPhone 7 case images, NWE this morning posted another series of shots from the same "reliable" source, this time including what looks like the larger iPhone 7 Plus handset with dual-lens camera.

iPhone-7-vs-iPhone-7Plus-Pro-Dummies
The additional iPhone 7 pictures offer a few more angles of a possibly fully assembled 4.7-inch device, without revealing anything particularly new, so we've reproduced them here merely for completion.

iPhone 7
Readers will note that the power/standby button, volume controls and mute switch can be made out on the sides of the case, while the metallic Apple logo appears to have been fitted, but the images still leave us none the wiser as to whether this device has a headphone jack or not.

iPhone-7-Plus-Dummy-03
The iPhone 7 Plus images on the other hand at least rekindle another salient talking point: the three holes on the bottom of the case's back side indicating a possible Smart Connector. Such a connector is designed to provide power and a data connection to accessories like keyboards, at least on the iPad Pro, but it's not entirely clear what its purpose would be on a 5.5-inch handset.

The possibility of a Smart Connector being exclusive to the iPhone 7 Plus has been the subject of a number of rumors, including both as a potential inclusion on the device and an idea already scrapped by Apple. Third-party cases have also fueled conflicting rumors on the existence of such a connector.

iPhone-7-Plus-Dummy-01
Another image offers a view of the front of what looks like an almost fully-assembled 5.5-inch handset, which appears to show a traditional physical clickable home button, rather than the rumored flush touch-sensitive one, a feature likely reserved for the tenth-anniversary OLED iPhone expected in 2017.

Again, the angle of the shot makes it hard to know for sure whether the headphone jack is gone or not. Elsewhere, eagle-eyed readers will have also noted the odd lack of a mute switch on the side of device, usually found next to the volume buttons.

Alleged leaks aside, both devices are expected to be officially unveiled by Apple in the fall. In addition to the aforementioned features, the smartphones are expected to have faster Apple A10 processors, 32GB of base storage, improved waterproofing, and faster LTE and Wi-Fi.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature Single Camera 2 Redux

Top 5 Apple Products to Look Forward to in 2025

Friday December 20, 2024 2:22 pm PST by
It's looking like 2025 is going to be an important year for Apple, with the company planning to revamp the iPhone, push further into smart home products, and improve Apple Intelligence. There are tons of new products rumored for 2025, including new iPhones, M4 Macs, a smart home command center, and much more. We've highlighted the top five Apple products that will have the biggest impact in...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...

Top Rated Comments

realeric Avatar
110 months ago
We need Steve Jobs. Seriously.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WarHeadz Avatar
110 months ago
We need Steve Jobs. Seriously.
Give it up already. It's old. He's dead. Deal with it.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KJL3000 Avatar
110 months ago
Where is the mute switch?!
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
diddl14 Avatar
110 months ago
So the biggest question is "will it have a headphone jack" and than guess what...they don't make a picture of the bottom
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
littyboy Avatar
110 months ago
The 7 Plus's camera looks so ugly that it makes the 7 look nice... that's how sad this is.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
goobot Avatar
110 months ago
Actually, I thought about that a while ago. They might remove it so you're able to mute the phone by using Siri. And they can add a mute button to the control bar.
Would be okay for me.
Imo a quick hard mute switch is a necessity on a phone. It's annoying enough the iPad lost it.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)