Apple iPhone 8: 8 reasons that make this year’s most awaited phone more special

Apple Inc will unveil the latest generation of iPhones at its headquarters in Cupertino , US, on September 12. While the buzz around the big bang announcement centres around the company's iconic "one more thing", the excitement this year is palpable: Given that 2017 marks the 10th anniversary of the iPhones, the company is expected to unveil a special edition of the iconic smartphone, dubbed the iPhone 8, aka iPhone X. Going by Apple's traditional nomenclature system, reports suggest that the new smartphones will be called iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus.

What makes this edition of the iPhone so special? There is nothing official, but the internet is abuzz with leaks, rumours, and even predictions from industry experts. A simple Google search for "iPhone 8" will tell you that the smartphone has been in the news mostly every day for the last six months.

Before the high-decibel launch on September 12, here's a primer on everything we know of the phone so far.

1. If you have been making all those "sell your kidney to buy an iPhone" jokes, it will be a good time now to include your arms, legs and DNA too to the list. The iPhone 8 is expected to cost around $1,000 (₹64,035 approximately). Do remember the iPhones usually cost higher in India than in the US, so direct currency conversion doesn't really work here.

2. With the iPhone 8, Apple is expected to join the growing list of smartphone players offering an edge-to-edge, or bazel-less, display. According to reports, the smartphone will have a curved OLED display. Xiaomi's Mi MIX, and a few others, have already shown us that phones with bezel-less display indeed look stunning. The Essential Phone is also a good example here. Samsung's Galaxy S8 and LG's G6 have gone a step further and introduced ultra-slim bezels. All eyes are now on Apple's take on bezel-less display.

3. A bezel-less display also means Apple will have to sacrifice the fingerprint button on the front, which has been part of the iPhones since 2012's 5S. However, there is no clarity on this one yet. While some reports say the iPhone 8 will have fingerprint scanner embedded onto the screen, there are many who conjecture it might be shifted either to the back panel or on the side.

A number of Android smartphones already sport rear-facing fingerprint scanners, while many others, like Nextbit Robin and Sony Xperia XZ1, have the fingerprint scanners embedded in the side power buttons.

Moving the fingerprint scanner to the screen, however, will be tricky. Reports suggest that Samsung too ditched the in-screen fingerprint scanner for its Note 8 and Galaxy S8 series. But then, Vivo demoed in-screen fingerprint scanner, which uses Qualcomm's ultrasonic scanners, in June this year in China.

4. There are also rumours that Apple may include a facial recognition technology for unlocking the smartphone. Samsung also provides a similar feature on its premium flagship phones, but it's not the only biometric recognition technology. It's highly unlikely Apple will just rely on facial recognition, regardless of how better it is than others.

5. Apple is also likely to bring back the glass back for iPhone 8. The company had of late moved to the metal back panels.

6. iPhone 8 may have wireless charging. This means users will no longer have to plug in the device to power it up.

7. The new phone may not have the 3.5mm audio jack. Instead, it will rely on Apple's lightning port. However, this time around, the company may introduce the USB Type-C to one end of the charging cord.

8. Apple has already showcased its ARKit and hinted at an aggressive push to Augmented Reality integration in its future phones. The ARKit is a major part of iOS 11 and the iPhone 8 is expected to be the new reference hardware platform for AR optimised for mobile devices.