Finally appeared! What about the new "iPhone"?

■ Serialization / Smartphone conference of Takayuki Horin, Atsushi Ishikawa, Junya Ishino, Asako Fusano

"Smartphone talk" that you can understand the back side of the industry by four people who are interviewing at the forefront of the smartphone industry. This time, we will discuss "iPhone 13 (tentative)" which is rumored to be announced soon.

* We are holding an internet conference to prevent the spread of new coronavirus infection.

Boldly anticipate the new "iPhone 13 (tentative)"! Is it difficult to adopt fingerprint authentication / USB Type-C?

Mr. Fusano: Last year was October, but it is the latest model of iPhone announced in September every year, but what kind of product will the new "iPhone 13", which is rumored to be this year's model, be? Is it an idea?

Mr. Fusano

Mr. Ishino: There haven't been many leak articles in advance this year.

Mr. Ishino

Mr. Ishikawa: Considering that there is less leak information than usual and no information about the case comes out, I wonder if it will be a small evolution that is almost the same in terms of design. The iPhone usually undergoes a major evolution about once every two years. The following year, when it has evolved significantly, it often appears as a minor change model with an "S" added. Considering that the "iPhone 12" series that appeared last year has undergone significant evolution, such as being compatible with 5G for the first time, there is a possibility that the new "iPhone 13" will not change so much.

Mr. Ishikawa

Mr. Ishino: The design of the housing has changed significantly in the "iPhone 12" series.

Mr. Horin: I think that this new iPhone will be virtually like the "iPhone 12s". Another thing I would like to pay attention to is whether the "iPhone 12 mini" will evolve into a new model. Although the "iPhone 12 mini" is said to be sold out, it is still sold, but Apple says that there is a serious shortage of semiconductors, so the model change of the iPhone 12 mini is likely to be in a difficult situation.

Mr. Horin

Mr. Ishino: There is almost no information leaked from China, probably due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection. Usually, the case for "iPhone 13" is leaked in advance.

Mr. Horin: There is no "next iPhone case review" that Mr. Ishino reports in the final report of IFA (exhibition held in Berlin, Germany) every year (laughs).

Mr. Ishino: That's right. It's a pity that I couldn't do important life work to predict the shape of the new iPhone from the case review information (laughs).

Mr. Ishikawa: If the case information does not come out, it seems that the shape does not change much.

Mr. Horin: Looking at the high-end models of rival manufacturers for the past year or so, most of the evolution has been such as increasing the refresh rate of the display, expanding the color gamut, and brightening the camera, so the shape as a device is not so much. I have the same impression.

Mr. Ishikawa: I don't think it's a matter of appearance, such as trying hard to support millimeter waves and evolving the AI ​​part of the chipset. I think it will be a great match between the "Google Tensor" installed in Google's "Pixel 6" series and Apple's "A series".

Pixel 6

Mr. Ishino: That's right. In "iOS 15", there are many functions related to AI. Expect special features that will only be available on your next iPhone.

Mr. Fusano: Is there a possibility that the fingerprint authentication function and USB Type-C will be supported, which is often requested by users?

Mr. Ishino: It's rumored that fingerprint authentication will not be installed.

Mr. Horin: If you have a fingerprint sensor built into the power button, you need to make a hole in the case. Perhaps the new iPhone will look the same as the current iPhone 12 series, so this line is unlikely.

On the other hand, although it is an in-screen authentication that may be a countermeasure, there was news that it gave up installing it. There is a model equipped with in-screen fingerprint authentication on Android smartphones, but there is also a direction to increase the area of ​​the sensor like AQUOS R6. This is Qualcomm's technology, so it's subtle when asked if Apple can be used.

Mr. Ishino: If the fingerprint sensor on the screen remains small, it will not be easy to use. It's difficult for Apple to adopt it.

Ishikawa: Also, there are many people in the United States who don't wear masks. If anything, I think the direction is to use the Apple Watch to unlock it.

Mr. Horin: There is a possibility that the price of Apple Watch will be lowered. If you're not good at it, you can buy the new "iPhone 13" and get the "Apple Watch SE2 (provisional)" at a discount of 10,000 yen.

Mr. Ishino: There are rumors that the design of the Apple Watch will change significantly.

Mr. Ishikawa: There is still room for evolution in the Apple Watch, so I think that's what makes it interesting.

Mr. Ishino: I hear rumors that blood sugar levels and alcohol levels will be able to be detected in the future. It looks the same all the time, so I think the design will change soon.

Mr. Fusano: Isn't USB Type-C compatible?

Mr. Horin: There is talk of making USB Type-C mandatory in the EU, but since the iPhone has been piled up so far, isn't it enough to leave it as Lightning and include a conversion adapter?

Ishikawa: Given that Lightning is so popular, there isn't much benefit from Apple's support for USB Type-C on the iPhone. In the case of "iPad Pro", I introduced it to bring it closer to the PC, but even though it is USB Type-C, there are multiple standards and adapters are different, so I think that it will settle down to Lightning as a safety measure.

Mr. Ishino: Personally, if you have multiple kitchens with Android, iPad Pro, and iPhone, you have to have a Lightning cable just for the iPhone, so I would like you to use USB Type-C.

Mr. Fusano: Galaxy has announced a new folding smartphone, but isn't there a "folding iPhone" for a while?

Mr. Horin: Folding mechanism is a fairly difficult technology, and since Galaxy is now waterproof, I think other manufacturers will not be able to catch up for a while.

Mr. Ishikawa: If Galaxy sells a lot, Apple may feel a sense of crisis, but I think it's still a wait-and-see. In the case of Apple, you have to sell a certain number, so adopting folding will be a high hurdle.

Mr. Horin: Galaxy's Fold series is good because it looks like another smartphone stacked on top of the current smartphone, but it is very difficult to design an antenna for a terminal with a vertically foldable design like the Flip series. It may be difficult if you are not the manufacturer who was doing feature phones.

It is necessary to grab the radio waves in the same way whether it is folded or opened, and I think that there are only a limited number of manufacturers that have the technology to that extent.

Galaxy Z Fold3 5G

Galaxy Z Flip3 5G

Mr. Ishino: Also, vertically folded smartphones are cool, but honestly, it's subtle when asked if there is a merit in folding an ordinary smartphone in half (laughs).

What is the real intention that the current model of iPhone at home electronics mass retailers has significantly reduced the price?

Mr. Ishikawa: There is a store that sells "iPhone SE (2nd generation)" for 10 yen at home electronics mass retailers. In addition to the discount of nearly 30,000 yen, if you sign a carrier contract, a 22,000 yen discount will be applied, and the real price will be 10 yen. Even if you don't have a carrier contract, the price is just over 20,000 yen, so it's strange why you're discounting so much.

iPhone SE (2nd generation)

Mr. Horin: Isn't it because the terminals aren't selling purely?

Mr. Ishino: The point is that it's just a discount. Since the new "iPhone 13" series will be released, I understand that the iPhone 12 series will be discounted as inventory disposal, but I'm not sure why the iPhone SE is also discounted at the same timing. I don't think there is much merit in discounting the iPhone SE at once.

Mr. Horin: After all, I think we have to earn a lot of sales. I think the Japanese corporation has not been able to secure the number of units sold.

Mr. Ishino: Do ​​you have an image of supplementing the sales volume with iPhone SE?

Mr. Horin: Maybe. You might have thought that the iPhone SE would sell more, or you might have thought that the iPhone 12 mini would sell more.

Mr. Fusano: Where are the resources to discount the iPhone SE?

Mr. Ishino: The discount for the carrier contract is from the carrier.

Mr. Ishikawa: There are two levels of discounts offered at consumer electronics mass retailers. First, nearly 30,000 yen has been deducted from the list price, which is probably Apple's. In addition, the carrier will give you a discount of 22,000 yen. If you want to buy with a carrier contract, there is a total discount of about 50,000 yen, which is actually 10 yen.

Mr. Fusano: Does the consumer electronics retailer have the umami to sell the iPhone SE for 10 yen?

Mr. Horin: Sales will be high. There is an upper limit of 22,000 yen for carriers to be able to discount, so it is unknown who is giving out the remaining discount of about 30,000 yen. However, there is a story from Apple to a consumer electronics mass retailer that "If you sell XX units because there is a lot of stock, I will give you XX yen", and it is calculated by discounting about 30,000 yen from there. I think there is a possibility.

Mr. Ishino: In the case of Apple, we do not discount so much for what is sold at our Apple Store, but we sometimes discount what is sold through carriers from the back. However, since the discount range this time is large, there is a possibility that Apple's profit will be lost.

Ishikawa: If you use your Apple ID, you'll get some into Apple. It can be regarded as a sales promotion in that sense, but the amount is too large for that.

Mr. Horin: The other day, when I looked at the used smartphone stores, I was surprised to find that there were a lot of unused iPhone SE boxes, probably because of the bargain sale.

......Continue!

Next time, we will have a meeting about paying PayPay. Please stay tuned.

Takayuki Horin writes review articles for digital-related products such as smartphones, mobile phones, and personal computers, and commentary articles for beginners, focusing on Web media and magazines. He has written many books such as manuals. Opinion number of the mobile industry.

Atsushi Ishikawa After joining Nikkei Home Publishing Co., Ltd. (currently Nikkei BP), he became independent in 2003. He covers not only domestic carriers and manufacturers, but also Google and Apple. NHK E-Tele "Hobby Doki!

Junya Ishino Joined Takarajimasha after graduating from Keio University. After becoming independent, he has been active in a wide range of media as a mobile journalist / writer. He has authored numerous books such as "Keitai Children" (Softbank new book) and "Easy to understand in one hour" (Mainichi Shimbun).

After being involved in editing mobile phone magazines at Asako Fusano Publishing, he became independent as a freelance writer in 2002. As one of the few female writers in the mobile industry, she writes in magazines and web media, focusing on introducing mobile devices from a female perspective.

Composition / Mikihiro Nakama / Fumihiko Sato