The Apple iPhone X is so 2017; rumors swirl about possible 2018 models

The Future of Apple: Clues and Rumors Piling Up

It's Thursday, December 7th, and following the rollout of the Apple iPhone 10, it's fair to say that the newest iPhone signals a clear change in direction for Cupertino. The question now is what's next? The clues and rumors are beginning to pile up, and the rumor mill got a significant dollop of Grist recently with a report on the Nikkei Asian review site.

According to the report, more and bigger OLED iPhones are on the way, as anyone would have logically suspected. However, details are beginning to emerge about the new iPhones, including some from the mysterious Ming Chico, perhaps the most accurate Apple prognosticator. According to a post on BGR, co says that Apple may eventually debut perhaps two even larger versions of the iPhone 10, including one called the 10 Plus which might have a 6.5 inch screen with close to 500 dots per inch. This is an extremely high resolution and will be great for VR and AR.

Other rumors suggest that the plus could be 6.3 inches instead. The third bit is that an iPhone 10-like phone with a lower-cost LCD screen is also in the works, and fans of the home button needn't worry. The iPhone 8 will likely soldier on for a while longer, probably with a standard S update, and the throwback SE will also remain in the lineup with perhaps a slight refresh. Again, it's all rumors for now, but 2018 is coming up quick.

Smart Luggage: A New Problem for Airlines

You probably noticed that smart luggage is a thing now, but it's also a thing that's apparently become a problem for airlines. The issue is an old one: batteries in new, high-tech bags like this cool blue Smart Rig use a battery to charge up your phone, track the bag with Bluetooth, sanitize your toothbrush, and more. However, now American Airlines, Delta, and Alaska Airlines are about to institute new rules that will keep those high-tech bags at home unless the battery can be removed and in many cases made.

The danger of course is that a high-density battery may fail during a flight, catch fire, and ignite the luggage compartment, which could, of course, bring down the aircraft. I think we can all agree that this is a legitimate concern. The new rules take effect January 15th, and other airlines are expected to follow suit soon.

Snapdragon 845: A New Era for Smartphones

The upcoming Samsung Galaxy S9 will likely feature the new Snapdragon 845 system on a chip computer chip, right on schedule. Qualcomm officially announced the new 845 yesterday. It's going to be made by Yes Chip Fab Samsung Foundry, which is convenient. We also mentioned how future smartphones may do double duty as home PCs, but before that happens, there's going to be a push to use the super chip in affordable and highly energy-efficient laptops.

With more focus being put on AI and VR and AR, we suspect that the 845 will power a new generation of virtual reality headsets and related gear. Suffice it to say, there are a lot of very complex things going on inside the 845. After you read the rundown on the new chip, it's pretty amazing to see that it's only this big. We live in amazing times, and hey, get more amazing tech news at Digital Trends, including our first hands-on look at the new Honor View 10 Android smartphone, a nifty step up from the 7x phone.

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