Video shows taller front panel allegedly for Apple's next iPhone - Apple Insider

By Katie Marsal

Published: 03:27 PM EST (12:27 PM PST) A new video purports to show the front panel of Apple's next-generation iPhone, with space for a screen length appreciably greater than previous-generation models.

The video, posted on Thursday by Japanese site Macotakara, shows a component claimed to be the glass front panel from Apple's sixth-generation iPhone. When placed atop a current iPhone, the panel shows a component noticeably longer � long enough so that the hole for the forward-facing FaceTime camera sticks above the current iPhone.

The larger surface area for the screen on the glass panel suggests the new display would be long enough to pass the earpiece on current iPhone models.

The video even suggests that the next iPhone's screen could be even wider than current models, as the front glass panel features a slightly greater distance in that direction as well. However, the larger width of the new screen shown is not as pronounced as the greater length.

Like other claimed iPhone component leaks that have surfaced this week, the front panel pictured in the new video shows a relocated FaceTime camera placed above the earpiece, rather than to the left of it. That's consistent with a schematic picture that appeared online on Wednesday.

Rumors of an elongated form factor for the new iPhone were also bolstered with another alleged component that appeared on the Web on Tuesday, purporting to show the back panel of a prototype of Apple's next iPhone. That component featured a mostly aluminum back with what appears to be glass at the top and bottom of the device.

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal joined a number of mainstream media organizations in reporting that Apple has been ordering 4-inch screens for Apple's next iPhone. The new, larger displays are believed to be manufactured by LG Display, Sharp, and Japan Display Inc., and would be a departure from the 3.5-inch diagonal screen that has been found on every iPhone model to date.

While the iPhone's screen has remained the same size, many of Apple's Android-based competitors have adopted larger screen sizes. For example, Samsung's new flagship Galaxy S III smartphone, launched this week in Europe, features a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED display more than an inch larger than Apple's iPhone.