Apple to Unveil Ultra-Thin iPhone Without SIM Card Tray Next Year
2min read According to a report by technology media The Information, Apple plans to launch a new series of iPhones next year, including the highly anticipated ultra-thin model, which does not feature a physical SIM card tray in its design.
In addition, Apple's latest iPhone models will undergo significant design changes next year. For instance, Apple will remove the iPhone Plus from its product line, and the thin iPhone will switch to an aluminum frame made of stainless steel and titanium alloys, with only one speaker in the earpiece.
This ultra-thin iPhonee is seen as one of the most important design innovations from Apple in recent years and will lay the foundation for the foldable iPhone that Apple plans to launch in 2026.
The prototype of the new iPhone is between 5 and 6 millimeters thick, while the iPhone 16 is 7.8 millimeters thick. Citing two sources involved in the project, The Information reports that so far, Apple's engineers have not been able to install a physical tray for SIM cards in this thin device.
The report states that this ultra-thin iPhone is currently undergoing small-batch trial production at Foxconn and has successfully passed the proto-1 phase, entering the proto-2 phase. Sources reveal that Apple's engineers need to solve the integration issue of the physical SIM card tray before next summer to finally determine the product design, production process, and equipment.
Since 2018, Apple has been trying to gradually phase out the physical SIM card tray. In the past two years, the U.S. version of the iPhone has not used a physical SIM card tray and has adopted eSIM technology. This technology can remotely verify the customer's identity and activate the phone.
Apple sells iPhones with physical SIM card trays in most parts of the world. Even in areas that support eSIM, traditional physical SIM cards are still available. In the Chinese market, physical SIM cards are the mainstream.
Therefore, unless Apple's designers can solve the problem of how to install a physical SIM card tray, the new iPhone may have difficulty selling in the Chinese market.
In its ambition to continuously break through the boundaries of industrial design and technology, Apple has repeatedly clashed with local regulations.
Previously, the EU criticized Apple for using proprietary ports and non-removable batteries and passed laws forcing Apple to redesign its hardware. Apple believes that such regulations would stifle innovation.
Apple's latest iPhone models are also reportedly to undergo significant design changes next year.
For example, Apple will remove the iPhone Plus from its product line to make way for a new thin model internally codenamed D23. The report cites informed sources saying that Apple plans to double the production of this slim iPhone compared to the iPhone Plus.
In addition, all new models will switch to an aluminum frame made of stainless steel and titanium alloys. The Pro and Pro Max models will have an aluminum upper half and a glass lower half on the back cover to support wireless charging.
The thin version iPhone will have only one speaker in the earpiece because there is no space at the bottom to accommodate a second speaker. It also has a large centered camera bump on the back, which contains one lens, while the standard iPhone has two lenses, and the Pro models have three.
The report also states that this thin iPhone will be the first batch of iPhones to use Apple's internal 5G modem next year, rather than the modem provided by Qualcomm.