A look into iPhone 15 and its possible release date
8 min read
The iPhone 15 is tipped to bring some big changes in terms of design and features, and we’re tracking all the rumors and leaks for the new iPhones.
For example, it looks as though Apple will finally embrace USB-C charging and ditch the Lightning port. We could also see the iPhone 15 feature a rounded design to make it more comfortable to hold, as well as upgrades to the cameras, chipset and more.
It also looks as though Apple will keep a very large divide between the regular and Pro models. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are both expected to feature a powerful new 3nm A17 Bionic chip and titanium design, and the Pro Max could boast a new periscope zoom lens.
iPhone 15 news (Updated April 12)
- The iPhone 15 Pro may not come with solid-state buttons after all, according to two analysts
- The iPhone 15 may include the same display materials as the iPhone 14 Pro Max — But the iPhone 15 Pro may miss an upgrade.
- After iPhone 15 Pro Max leaks showed off super-thin bezels and a larger camera bump, more iPhone 15 Pro leaks have emerged, seemingly confirming the smaller bezels.
- The iPhone 15 Pro could blow away the iPhone 15 and we break down why.
iPhone 15 release date predictions
Of all the early iPhone 15 rumors, this one is the easiest to predict. The iPhone 14 launched Wednesday, September 7 and the release date was Friday September 16. If Apple stuck to a similar pattern, we could see the iPhone 14 launch September 6 with a release date of September 15.
In the last decade, Apple has only announced its new flagship smartphones outside of September once: October 2020, amid a once-in-a-generation pandemic that necessitated stay-at-home orders and disrupted tech supply chains.
As such, it is highly likely that the iPhone 15 will arrive in September 2023. Typically Apple announces its phones about ten days before they’re released, with pre-orders opening a week ahead of go-time. One source claims it could be September 22/23 specifically we see the iPhone 15 go on sale.
There is a slight wrinkle now, however. Trial production reportedly began for the iPhone 15 lineup and that January start date is a month earlier than it has been in the past. This seems to be due to Apple’s mass-production plans in India and China rather than an indication that we will see an iPhone earlier than usual, but we cannot rule it out for sure. Still, we expect a September unveiling for the iPhone 15 until someone convinces us otherwise.
Read more on iPhone 15 release date rumors.
iPhone 15 price speculation
With the iPhone 14, there was strong speculation that we would see a 15% price increase, but this turned out to be incorrect — if you live in the United States. Other regions saw a substantial increase, but in the US the only change in pricing was the elimination of the cheapest ‘mini’ model.
That means that prices currently go from $799 / £849 / AU$1,399 for the 128GB entry-level iPhone 14 all the way up to $$1,599 / £1,749 / AU$2,769 for the 1TB iPhone 14 Pro Max. We would expect something similar this time around, but it’s entirely possible that the iPhone 15 will see the price rise that the U.S. missed out on in 2022.
As it happens, a $100 price hike has been tipped for the iPhone 15 Pro. This could be down to more advanced features coming to the next-gen iPhone, which is why analyst Jeff Pu believes an iPhone 15 Pro price increase is likely. If the $100 figure is accurate, the iPhone 15 Pro would top $1,000, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max would cost as much as an $1,1999 Galaxy S23 Ultra. It’s not clear if this price hike will apply to the U.K., Australia or other regions.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Korean blog Naver raises the possibility that Apple could lower costs for the iPhone 15 in response to soft iPhone 14 Plus sales. The idea is that Apple might adjust pricing to make its lower-cost iPhones more attractive to shoppers looking for value.
iPhone 15 possible models
For its 2022 releases, Apple killed the iPhone mini, and introduced the iPhone 14 Plus instead. That simplified the choice: whether you wanted to go Pro or not, you could get either a 6.1- or 6.7-inch screen. We have more on why the iPhone 15 mini is unlikely to return this fall.
When the iPhone 15 lineup does emerge, we will probably see the following four models: the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. A recent TrendForce report used these names to highlight expected iPhone 15 features, so keeping the same naming conventions seems like a real possibility.
However, we could see huge iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15 Pro differences this year, as only the Pro models are tipped to feature the new A17 Bionic chip and titanium design. Plus, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is expected to get a periscope zoom camera. This leads us to believe Apple may be neglecting the regular iPhone 15.
But there could be one addition to this list — an iPhone 15 Ultra. Reliable tipster, Mark Gurman recently tweeted(opens in new tab) that after the Apple Watch Ultra that was launched this year, we could “expect” the variant for iPhones in the future — something he later reiterated in his newsletter.
Could this mean a completely new iPhone 15 Ultra? Or will the Pro Max simply get rebranded as the Ultra? Gurman has recently claimed otherwise, saying that we’ll be seeing the iPhone 16 Ultra next year, with the expectation that such a phone would launch alongside the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Evidentially the iPhone 16 Plus may be the one getting the boot. But we may be getting ahead of ourselves, talking about 2024 when 2023’s phones have yet to arrive.
For a breakdown of what to expect from Apple’s highest-end model, check out our iPhone 15 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max comparison for the biggest upgrades.
iPhone 15 design rumors
Several design leaks for the iPhone 15 suggests that it could bring the curved design of the iPhone 11 Pro Max back. Apple has a flat-edge design on its latest iPhones, but now leakers say that while the display will remain flat, all three devices could have thinner, curved bezels(opens in new tab). The last iPhone to sport a curved-edge display was the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
Similarly, the camera bump on the back of the iPhone 15 could have a new design. The rumors have yet to tell us how though, beyond it being larger and thicker than before. The iPhone 15 Pro may see the most dramatic increase, as early renders show the individual lenses have doubled in size from the previous generation.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max doesn’t appear to have anywhere near as big an increase planned. Leaked designs show its lenses protrude less than the iPhone 14 Pro Max’s, which would support rumors that the Pro Max could sport a new periscope zoom lens.
The display itself may also have a slight slant to it to work with the new design. As a result, it could be hard to apply after-market screen protectors. The iPhone 15 may also come with the same “M12” display materials that were used in the iPhone 14 Pro series. However the Pro models may also come with the same materials, with a further upgrade not happening next year.
In another report, Gurman claims all iPhone 15 models will get the Dynamic Island, which got backed up by alleged real-life photos of the standard iPhone 15. This could see more developers get spurred on to making apps that adapt to the morphing camera cutout/display feature, further adding to its capabilities.
It may well be a new type of Dynamic Island too, as Apple’s rearranging some of the sensors inside, leaks say.
Don’t expect to see the ProMotion adaptive refresh rate appear on the standard iPhone 15 model, however. Despite originally launching on the iPhone 13 Pro, Ross Young claims that the standard models won’t be getting the silky-smooth LTPO displays until at least 2025.
Renders reportedly based on CAD files for the iPhone 15 Plus show off the above changes, with a Dynamic Island replacing the notch found on the iPhone 14 Plus, and the Lightning port getting replaced by USB-C.
Do take these renders with a pinch of skepticism, as it’s early days for iPhone 15 rumors and there’s scope for this design to change or get shelved completely given the iPhone 14 Plus hasn’t sold particularly well compared to its stablemates.
The same applies to some fresh CAD-based renders for the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which apparently show off the phone’s dimensions; it has slightly thicker sides but a smaller overall camera module. A separate set of iPhone 15 Pro renders shows a bigger camera but smaller bezels and capacitive buttons. Additional leaked renders seem to confirm the smaller bezels, with the iPhone 15 Pro likely to have 1.55mm bezels compared to 2.1mm for the iPhone 14 Pro.
We’ve seen these designs in genuine 3D now thanks to dummy units of all four expected models. They’re not too different looking from the iPhone 14 series, but they’re still different enough to require new cases.
It’s not clear whether Apple will introduce reverse wireless charging in the iPhone 15. The iPhone 11 Pro Max was the first model to have the right hardware for reverse wireless charging, albeit deactivated. A report from 9to5Mac claims that development of the feature is still happening, but it’s not entirely clear if and when it might arrive.
Despite rumours that Touch ID will make a return, Gurman claims Apple has no plans to bring fingerprint scanning back to flagship iPhones for the foreseeable future. This was reiterated by Twitter leaker Unknownz21, who says we’d have heard about Apple testing the feature if it was going to launch with iPhone 15
Apparently the company has been testing in-display Touch ID, and even discussed adding it to the power button, but instead it looks like Face ID will be the only option in 2023 and beyond.
A rumor from Ming-Chi Kuo claims that “two high-end iPhone 15s” will feature solid-state buttons, similar to the home button found in the likes of the iPhone SE. This was lent more weight by another claim by Barclays analysts, who have the iPhone 15 Pro tipped to get solid-state buttons, and analyst Jeff Pu, who adds that Apple would use extra Taptic Engine vibration motors to give feedback for these buttons.
However both analysts have changed their tune, and now claim Apple won’t be offering solid-state buttons on the iPhone 15 Pro after all. For reasons relegating to complexity and sourcing the necessary parts. However the new design may make its debut in 2024 on the iPhone 16 Pro.
The benefit to such a design would be fewer moving parts exposed to external elements, potentially making for a more durable iPhone, while still delivering a tactile button feel via haptics. This has been used to great effect with the Force Touch trackpad on the MacBook range. So Apple could ape that with the next iPhone, if such rumors prove to be legitimate.
