No Notch? | Apple Hopes to Put Face ID Beneath the iPhone 16’s Display in 2024

Although some folks once speculated that Apple would eliminate the notch by moving back to under-display Touch ID, more recent reports have confirmed that Touch ID is dead — at least insofar as putting it behind the display goes. While Apple will almost certainly continue to support traditional hardware Touch ID on lower-end iPhone models — either in the Home button or the side button — when it comes to its flagship iPhones, it’s all about Face ID now.

With all the effort that Apple has been putting in to improve Face ID, it stands to reason that the real effort is on getting those sensors to work through the screen — and Apple has reportedly been working on that for a while already. However, now we’re beginning to get a better idea of exactly when this will actually happen.

Last month, Korea’s The Elec shared that Apple was working on “a new under panel camera technology” to hide Face ID under the display. It predicted it might come as soon as next year’s “iPhone 15 Pro,” but like many such predictions, that seemed overly optimistic.

Instead, more reliable analysts have indicated that Apple aims to have the new technology ready by 2024 for the release of the “iPhone 16” lineup.

This includes analyst Ross Young, who closely follows the display panel industry, and now veteran Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has weighed in to confirm its 2024 arrival — with an interesting twist.

According to Kuo, the timeline has more to do with “marketing” than getting the technology ready. Kuo doesn’t elaborate on what he means, but we’re guessing it relates to Apple’s plans for this year’s “iPhone 14” lineup.

Although we won’t know for sure until Apple shows off the new iPhone models this fall, everything we’ve seen and heard points to a pill- or hole-shaped cutout for the camera — or more likely both.

There’s some debate on exactly what these cutouts will look like or whether they’ll be visible. Some reports have suggested that the second cutout — the hole containing the Face ID dot projector — could be hidden behind the screen, leaving only the larger pill-shaped opening visible. Whether it’s a pill, a hole, or both, everybody seems to agree that the notch is going away — at least on the higher-end “iPhone 14 Pro” models.

What’s happening with the standard iPhone 14 family is less certain, but many believe that these will retain the traditional notch, moving to the new design with next year’s “iPhone 15.”

If that’s true, the “iPhone 15 Pro” could gain under-display Face ID in 2023 to set it apart from the standard iPhone 15. However, it would still be unusual for Apple to introduce a new design and then effectively retire it only a year later.

Historically, Apple sticks with new designs for at least a couple of years. For instance, the iPhone XR introduced the Liquid Retina LCD, which carried on into the standard iPhone 11 the following year — despite rumors that Apple would go all-in on OLED.

While there’s certainly a possibility that Apple could reserve the under-display Face ID for its “Pro” iPhone models, even in that case, the 2023 “iPhone 15” could turn out to be the transition year, where the entire lineup gets the new pill-and-hole design, before moving on to the seamless glass face of the 2024 “iPhone 16.”

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]