Apple set to unveil waterproof iPhone 7 on the sly – leak

It’s no secret Apple may be planning to release a water resistant iPhone, allowing it to keep pace with Samsung, Sony and other top smartphone manufacturers.

However, a new patent filing published this week, suggests any handset resistant to the wet stuff will also take pretty awesome underwater photos.

The 2013 filing, granted in 2015 and unearthed by Patently Apple (via Wired) explains new colour-balancing editing software, which would “remove undesirable tints from objects in a scene,” to ensure the water looks blue.

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The filing states: “Removing undesirable tints without removing the tint of the water itself results in images with more realistic coloring of people and objects in the scene, without eliminating the color cues (e.g., blue water) that indicate that the image is a photograph of an underwater scene.”

Given the filing is three years old, rather than newly made, it would indicate the technology might now be ready for prime time.

Of course, Apple does not roll all of its parents into real world gadgets, but there is cause to believe the company may do on this occasion.

Multiple rumours have suggested next month’s iPhone 7 will be the first to officially claim water resistance.

The current iPhone 6S has been shown to offer some level of waterproofing, but it’s not something Apple has ever acknowledged.

While better underwater photos would be a bonus, it seems highly unlikely it’ll be a tool that can be used by divers.

Most smartphones claiming water resistance only do so to depths of 1.5 metres for around 30 minutes. That would make it ideal for a scuba session at least.