Every generation or so, a device arrives not merely as an upgrade but as a statement about what a tool can become. Apple's reported plans for the iPhone 20 — a phone that curves at every edge, hides its camera beneath the glass, and replaces mechanical buttons with solid-state touch — suggest the company is preparing to shed a design language it has worn for nearly a decade. The ambition is clear; whether the engineering can meet it is the question that will define the next two years.
iPhone 20 leaks suggest edge-to-edge display and button-free design
A display that curves around all four edges of the device
Mark
Why would Apple skip the iPhone 19 entirely? That seems like an odd numbering choice.
Mimi
It's a signal that something fundamental is changing. Apple did the same thing with the iPhone X—it was a complete redesign, a moment where the company wanted to mark a generational leap. Skipping a number makes it feel like a threshold, not just another incremental update.
Mark
The edge-to-edge display wrapping all four sides—that sounds beautiful but fragile. Why would Apple pursue that if durability is such an obvious problem?
Mimi
Because it solves a design problem that's been nagging at Apple for years: the visual interruption. Every phone has bezels, notches, islands. An edge-to-edge display is the logical end point of that thinking. Whether it's practical is a different question entirely.
Mark
And the solid-state buttons built into the frame—is that actually an improvement, or just removing something tactile that people rely on?
Mimi
That's the real tension. Mechanical buttons give you feedback. You know when you've pressed something. Solid-state buttons are more durable and cleaner aesthetically, but they require a learning curve. Apple will have to get the haptic feedback exactly right or people will feel like the phone is broken.
Mark
What about the under-display camera? Samsung tried that and gave up.
Mimi
Exactly. Which is why it's interesting that Apple seems to be doubling down on it. Either Apple has solved something Samsung couldn't, or Apple is about to learn the same expensive lesson. The camera sits behind the display, and light has to pass through the screen material. That's a physics problem, not just an engineering one.
Mark
So this phone is still two years away. What happens if these leaks turn out to be wrong?
Mimi
Then we'll have spent two years imagining a phone that never existed. But the leaks are specific enough—the curved display, the button-free design, the under-display camera—that they suggest someone inside Apple's supply chain is talking. Whether Apple actually ships this design or uses it as a testing ground for future ideas, we won't know until we see it.
Der Puls
- Apple appears ready to skip the iPhone 19 entirely, signaling a redesign so significant the company wants a number that matches the magnitude of the leap.
- A display curving around all four edges and an under-display camera would erase nearly every visual interruption modern smartphones have normalized — but more glass exposure and compromised light transmission are real, unsolved problems.
- Solid-state, pressure-sensitive controls built into a narrow metal band would replace every physical button on the device, a concept backed by a patent but untested at consumer scale.
- Samsung and other manufacturers have tried curved screens and under-display cameras before, then quietly retreated — Apple is betting it can solve what its competitors could not.
- With the device still roughly two years from release, these leaks map a direction more than a destination, and Apple's reputation for reliability means durability must match the drama of the design.
Every generation or so, a device arrives not merely as an upgrade but as a statement about what a tool can become. Apple's reported plans for the iPhone 20 — a phone that curves at every edge, hides its camera beneath the glass, and replaces mechanical buttons with solid-state touch — suggest the company is preparing to shed a design language it has worn for nearly a decade. The ambition is clear; whether the engineering can meet it is the question that will define the next two years.
Apple's next major redesign, reportedly centered on the iPhone 20, is shaping up to be the most dramatic overhaul since the iPhone 17 Pro — significant enough that the company appears ready to skip the iPhone 19 entirely, echoing the symbolic leap it made with the iPhone X in 2017.
The defining feature is a display that curves around all four edges of the device, replacing the familiar titanium frame with a narrow metal band that runs along the phone's middle. That band would also house the controls: solid-state, pressure-sensitive buttons for power, volume, and the action function, responding to touch rather than mechanical clicks. The Dynamic Island notch, meanwhile, would give way to an under-display camera, removing the last visible interruption from the front face.
The vision is striking, but the road is lined with cautionary examples. Curved displays expose more glass to impact damage and resist protective covers in ways manufacturers have never fully resolved. Samsung and others experimented with the form and largely retreated. Under-display cameras carry their own burden — light transmission through the display panel degrades image quality, a problem that led Samsung to abandon the technology in later models. Apple's apparent plan to use under-display cameras in the iPhone 18 and a rumored iPhone Fold suggests the company believes it has found answers its competitors missed, though that confidence is still unproven.
Two years remain before any of this reaches consumers, which means these leaks are better read as a statement of intent than a product specification. Apple has always balanced visual ambition with practical durability, and that balance will determine whether this redesign becomes a milestone or a cautionary tale of its own.
Apple's next major redesign is coming, and it will look nothing like the phones the company has been selling for the past several years. According to leaks reported by The Information, the iPhone 20 is shaping up to be the most dramatic overhaul since the iPhone 17 Pro—a shift so significant that Apple appears ready to skip the iPhone 19 entirely, much as it did with the iPhone X back in 2017.
The centerpiece of this redesign is a display that curves around all four edges of the device, creating what amounts to a screen with almost nowhere to hide. Gone would be the titanium frame that has defined recent iPhones; in its place, a narrow metal band would run around the middle of the phone, serving as both structural support and the home for the device's controls. It's a bold concept, one that prioritizes visual continuity over the familiar industrial design language Apple has refined over the past decade.
But how do you operate a phone with no buttons? According to a patent discovered in October, Apple has an answer: solid-state buttons built directly into the frame itself. The power button, volume controls, and action button would all function as touch-sensitive elements integrated into the metal band, responding to pressure rather than mechanical clicks. Alongside this, the phone is expected to ditch the Dynamic Island notch in favor of an under-display camera, further erasing the visual interruptions that have become standard on modern smartphones.
The concept is undeniably striking. Yet the path to execution is littered with cautionary tales. Curved displays, while visually appealing, present real durability challenges. They expose more glass surface area to damage when dropped, and applying protective screen covers becomes a puzzle that manufacturers have struggled to solve convincingly. Samsung and other phone makers have experimented with curved screens for years, and many have quietly retreated from the design as a result. The trade-off between aesthetics and resilience remains unresolved.
Under-display cameras present their own set of problems. Samsung, among others, has incorporated the technology only to abandon it in later models, citing image quality degradation. The camera sits behind the display panel, which necessarily compromises light transmission and sensor clarity. Apple, however, appears committed to the approach—rumors suggest the company plans to use under-display cameras in both the iPhone 18 and a rumored iPhone Fold. This suggests Apple believes it has found a technical solution that previous manufacturers missed, though that remains unproven.
The iPhone 20 is still roughly two years away, which means these leaks should be treated as directional rather than definitive. Apple's design philosophy has always balanced innovation with practicality, and the company will need to solve the durability and image quality questions before this vision reaches consumers. What's clear is that Apple recognizes the need to break from the visual sameness that has defined its recent lineup. Whether the company can deliver on that ambition without sacrificing the reliability users expect remains the open question.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
Apple appears ready to skip the iPhone 19 entirely, much as it did with the iPhone X back in 2017— The Information reporting
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