The iPhone 16 will in all likelihood get the thinnest screen bezels we’ve ever gotten on an iPhone. The same is true for this year’s iPad Pro. For some it’s good news, for others less so.
Apple has made no secret over the years that it would like to say goodbye to screen bezels. Not only on products like the iPhone, but also on the iPad, for example.
If recent rumors are to be believed, Apple, along with supplier Samsung, has found a way to make the bezels a lot smaller than before. And while that’s particularly good news for the iPhone in our opinion, it seems to be anything but convenient for the iPad Pro.
iPhone 16 may get thinnest bezels ever
Apple may provide the iPhone 16, and all models that come with it, with BRS technology. According to South Korea’s SisaJournal-e, suppliers Samsung Display, LG Display and BOE have mastered the technology to the point that Tim Cook’s U.S. company is willing to take the gamble.
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BRS stands for Border Reduction Structure and is a technology that enables ultra-thin screen edges. What’s impressive about it is that the technology mainly manages to reduce the bottom edge, whereas this is usually one of the trickiest things to fix due to heat.
So not only the Pro models, but both the standard iPhone 16 and the Plus will get extremely thin screen bezels this year. While some users online are expressing concerns about using cases, it is something to be excited about. Though given the focus on AI, this won’t be the biggest development this year.
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Via MacRumors today, however, we come across a rumor about the iPad Pro. This year’s model will most likely feature thinner screen bezels. The post talks about the 11-inch iPad Pro with 7.12mm bezels and a 12.9-inch model with 7.08mm bezels.
If the information is to be believed, that would mean that the screen bezels would be between 10 and 15 percent thinner than the models that appeared between 2018 and 2022.
Piece thinner than the one in Star Trek. (Image: Apple)
While we obviously have to take the news with a grain of salt, the source, Instant Digital in this one, is reliable. In the past, the person has been right on several occasions.
iPhone 16 good idea, iPad Pro less so
While there are concerns about cases, I have to honestly admit that the thinner the screen bezels are on a smartphone the more premium the product feels. So the iPhone 16 with ultra-thin screen bezels is music to my ears. However, the same cannot be said for the thinner screen bezels on the iPad Pro.
There is a good chance that the 2024 iPad Pro will look more high-end, but whether the thinner screen bezels will actually be useful is a second. It all has to do with how you hold certain devices.
With the iPad Pro, for example, it’s nice that there’s a bezel around the screen where nothing happens to it the moment you touch it. Whether it’s convenient that that piece is going to virtually disappear I highly question.
Time will tell. Whereas the iPad Pro can be expected in the next few weeks, we obviously have to wait months until that iPhone 16 sees the light of day. Plenty of time to properly master that BRS technology, then.
