If a new report is true, Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro Max will have the smallest bezels ever seen on a smartphone.
This assertion has been made by Ice Universe(opens in new browser), a well-known Twitter leaker who believes the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s bezel breadth will be 1.55mm.
iPhone 15 Pro Max will break the record of 1.81mm bezel black edge held by Xiaomi 13, and we measure that its cover plate black bezel width is only 1.55 mm.（S22 and S23 ≈1.95mm，iPhone 14 Pro 2.17mm） pic.twitter.com/9TBrVCGSCo
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) March 17, 2023
As Ice Universe points out, that compares to the current record bearer for the narrowest display bezels, the Xiaomi 13, which measures 1.81mm – a fact that contributes to the handset’s overall slickness.
According to MacRumors(opens in new tab), which noticed the tweet, the Xiaomi 13 actually has 1.61mm bezels on three sides – it’s 1.81mm on the bottom border only – but Apple is still on track to beat either measurement. (in theory).
If the 1.55mm bezel breadth is realized, and the iPhone 14 Pro is 2.17mm, Apple will have slimmed down its smartphone by nearly 30%, which is no small accomplishment.
This won’t hurt the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s desire to appear even more premium, and it’ll undoubtedly provide some lovely bragging rights to include in marketing materials.
The source is reasonably trustworthy, and we’ve already heard from the rumor mill that both iPhone 15 Pro versions could get thinner bezels (with curved sides), lending credence to this conjecture.
Analysis: A seriously smart looking handset – but at what cost?
Assuming this is Apple’s goal, bezels that are nearly a third slimmer – and indeed, the smallest in the world – will undoubtedly serve as a PR selling point, as previously stated. But, do we really require this?
That is a rather individual matter. Some may be concerned that extremely thin borders will not assist with fragility. Others may feel that the iPhone already has fairly svelte bezels, and that this is an unnecessary ‘upgrade’. To be fair to Apple, slimming down the bezels to almost a vanishing point level will almost certainly increase the visual allure in terms of luxury standards. And this is where we become concerned that this could be linked to equal premium pricing.
Recently, rumors have circulated that Apple plans to raise the prices of the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max (which, at least in the United States, would be the first price rise for Apple’s high-end phones since the iPhone X launched in 2017).
And the news of a record-breaking bezel-free display is yet another indication that the bill of materials for the iPhone 15 Pro versions will be increased – and that the retail price tag will follow suit.
Other theories pointing to the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s premium character include conjecture that it will use a next-generation Samsung panel that will be super-bright and extremely high quality. Furthermore, we’ve heard about a much faster A17 Bionic SoC, more RAM (8GB, up from 6GB) for the iPhone 15 Pro models, and a periscope camera. (for better optical zoom). Oh, and don’t forget about the titanium frame, which adds to the production expenses…
So, the price of the iPhone 15 Pro versions will rise? Yes, we can believe that, especially given the threat of inflation and the fact that there has been no price movement at the top end for Apple’s devices in over 6 year.
Indeed, the more we hear through the grapevine about Apple pushing for this new feature or enhancing this or that aspect of the chassis, display, or camera, the more it appears that a price increase is not only likely, but almost certain, at least for Pro versions of the next-generation iPhone. The vanilla varieties may be different, but we’ll almost definitely have to wait until September to find out.
