This year saw the the launch of what might just be the most underwhelming Apple handset ever, with the iPhone 7’s minimal design improvements failing to impress many fans.
And while the phone’s unexciting debut seems not to have damaged its popularity, its abysmal battery life made it the first iPhone we at TrustedReviews have not recommended.
But we’re holding out hope that next year’s iPhone installment, likely to be the iPhone 8, will bring the design overhaul and new features we’ve been waiting for, with patents and rumours suggesting Apple will opt for a bezel-less full-face screen.
Related: iPhone 7
The iPhone 7
And it seems, along with the new design, we might see some novel AI-based features arrive with the iPhone 8, if Tim Cook’s latest statements are anything to go by.
The Apple CEO spoke to Japanese site Nikkei during a trip to the country to open new a research and development facility in Yokohama.
Hinting at possible future innovations, Cook told the site that the new facility would be woking on developing “deep engineering” for its AI systems, saying AI “is horizontal in nature, running across all products”.
Perhaps most interesting, however, was his comment that Apple wants “the AI to increase your battery life,” hinting that future iPhones could come with some form of AI-assisted battery saving features.
And while further details are, of course, non-existent at this time, we’re hoping Apple figures out how to implement such a feature very soon, if only to make up for the iPhone 7’s poor battery performance.
The only further information Cook provided was that the company also has ambitions to make an AI that will “help you remember where you parked your car.”
With Google making big developments in AI, most notably with its DeepMind division which produced the artificial inteligence system that beat a Go world champion this year, and Microsoft restructuring to create a new AI division, Apple will face a lot of competition when it comes to artificial intelligence.
But we’re excited to see what comes out of its research in the near future, beyond an iPhone with a decent battery life.
WATCH: iPhone 7 vs iPhone 8
Let us know what you’d like to see on the iPhone 8 in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.