In this article, we round up all the rumours about the iPhone 8: its UK release date and onsale date (a leaked internal memo points to an announcement on or close to 17 September), UK price, tech specifications and new features. We also cover leaked photos and videos, and designers' concept illustrations.
For advice on the current iPhone range, read our iPhone buying guide and best cheap iPhone deals UK. Or, if you'd like to look even further into the future, read iPhone 9 and beyond: From graphene to motion charging. We also look at new iPhone rumours here: iPhone 7s rumours.
Header/thumbnail image is a concept illustration by Handy Abo Vergleich.
Release date
The iPhone 8 is expected to be released in September 2017, just as the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus came out in September 2016, and a recent leak suggests a launch on or close to 17 September. Mind you, multiple sources had previous suggested delays, which we'll discuss afterwards. Read next: Where will the iPhone 8 be made?
Internal memo hints at 17 September launch
An internal company memo, instructing AppleCare staff when they can and can't take holidays, has been leaked - and gives strong hints about the iPhone 8 launch date, or at least its launch window.
The memo, posted by Benjamin Geskin (who is responsible for several other leaks referred to in this article), names 'black out days', when staff must be present, between 17 September and 4 November. This suggests that the launch announcement will come on or very close to 17 September, and that the following eight weeks represent the product's highest-demand period, when staff will be most urgently needed in the office.
"Black Out Days are days in which we expect call volume to be at the highest, and we need all hands on deck," reads the memo. "Advisors and Leaders will be restricted from requesting days off for Paid Time Off (PTO) and Unpaid Time Off... Absences are unacceptable."
As a worried member of the Macworld team pointed out, 17 September is a Sunday, and it would be extremely unusual for an iPhone to be announced on a weekend. So our suspicion is that the iPhone 8 will actually be unveiled in the week of 18-25 September.
One other caveat: the memo adds that "these dates are subject to change", so things may not be set in stone. But we'd be surprised if the plans weren't reasonably firm at this point.
Delays until October, November... or even 2018
September is looking a good bet, then. But not everyone thinks Apple's plans are proceeding smoothly. Multiple sources had previously been suggesting that Apple's iPhone 8 may be delayed until November, or even 2018... and it's still possible that we'll get the announcement in September as discussed above, but that one or more of the handsets won't become available for months afterwards.
In a research note, Deutsche Bank analysts state that "key component shortages and technical challenges could delay the release of a high-end iPhone 8 device this fall," according to a Business Insider report. While IHS Markit analyst Brian Huh claims Samsung is having trouble meeting demand for the OLED displays ordered by Apple - BGR suggests the delay is because the display will incorporate the home button and Touch ID.
Digitimes has predicted that "production for the new OLED iPhone is unlikely to start until September due to the redesigned fingerprint ID solution", and KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has stated that the expected new 3D camera system will cause delays: "Unless production of the OLED iPhone (expected to begin in September) gets pushed back, there is virtually no time to make changes to the 3D camera system." (Both via Business Insider.)
ST Microelectronics, the company tipped to make this component for Apple, are - according to SlashGear's sources - struggling to hit volume targets and have requested additional time, although it's unclear at this point if the reported "small fire" at ST Microelectronics' manufacturing plant is a factor in all this.
Fubon Securities analyst Arthur Liao claims that Apple and its suppliers are working to resolve overheating issues in wireless charging modules, according to this Nikkei report. And Yuanta Investment Consulting's Jeff Pu points to delays with the OLED display, suggesting the new iPhone won't be available until November.
What will the next iPhone be called?
The big question is whether the company will skip the iPhone 7s generation this time around and move straight to the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus - or if Apple will release an iPhone 8 alongside the iPhone 7s and 7s Plus, with the iPhone 8 getting the flagship features.
This would be a break from the norm. Apple releases a full-version iPhone update every other year - such as iPhone 4, iPhone 5, iPhone 6 - and a more limited 'S' update in between - iPhone 4s, iPhone 5s and 5c, iPhone 6s. So, based on previous behaviour, we ought to get an iPhone 7s and an iPhone 7s Plus in September. But it's possible that Apple won't continue the S strategy for much longer.
The 'tick-tock' system is a risky policy. When the average user hears that the new iPhone hasn't even been considered worthy of a full version number upgrade, they'll be put off from spending money on it. Not to mention that an S update is more confusing for buyers.
iPhone 8
In October 2016 a little extra weight was added to the 'iPhone 8 in 2017' theory. According to Business Insider, an Apple employee in Israel who solders components spoke to them about the next iPhone and referred to it as the iPhone 8 "unprompted in our conversation".
Making predictions about the upcoming performance of Apple stock, analysts at Credit Suisse forecast that the iPhone 8, to be released on the iPhone's 10-year anniversary in 2017, will skip the 'S' generation in recognition of its major updates.
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