Rumours of a new budget iPhone called the Apple iPhone 9 have been circling for a while, and now it seems a larger variant could also be on the way.
Apple-centric publication 9to5Mac has rooted through iOS14 code and found the first evidence of an iPhone 9 Plus. The two new budget handsets would allegedly replace the 2017-released iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which have 4.7in and 5.5in screens respectively. While previous reports have alluded to the iPhone 9 sporting the same size screen as the iPhone 8, we can only guess that the iPhone 9 Plus would match its predecessor's display.
The iPhone 9 would be an entry-level 'iPhone SE 2' (another speculative moniker for the forthcoming handset) of sorts with many of the iPhone 8's features, including Touch ID and a physical Home button. We can, however, reasonably expect it to be powered by the faster A13 chip (which Apple debuted in the excellent iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro) and have 3GB (as opposed to 2GB) of RAM.
According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, prices could start at around $399 for the iPhone 9 (about £310, although no UK pricing has been specifically mentioned) for a variant with 64GB of storage. We would expect a 'Plus' version to cost at least $100 more for the extra screen real estate.
In light of Apple recently cancelling its iPhone event, which was slated for 31st March, the iPhone 9 and iPhone 9 Plus could well be introduced during the company's annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), an online-only event this year to conform to Santa Clara's mandatory order banning public gatherings of more than 1000 people. It could also be where Apple chooses to unveil its first over-ear headphones. Apple says it will share all the details of its virtual WWDC, including the precise date, in the coming weeks.
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