Earlier this week, reputable display analyst Ross Young of Counterpoint Research reignited discussion around recent reports about the display changes we should expect for next year's iPhone 18 Pro, and perhaps more notably, broader changes coming to the 20th anniversary iPhone in 2027 – as well as what lies ahead for Apple's flagship device for the rest of the decade.
Contradicting a report by The Information, which suggests next year's iPhone 18 Pro models will come with a small hole cutout in the top-left corner to accommodate the front-facing camera, Young claims the premium devices will instead have a narrower Dynamic Island, owing to Apple moving some Face ID components under the display.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has also said that Apple will shrink the size of the Dynamic Island on at least some iPhone models launching next year, meaning there are now multiple sources who believe that iPhone 18 models will still have a smaller Dynamic Island rather than only a front camera hole.
As for the 2027 iPhone, Young believes that Apple's 20th anniversary device will continue to feature the smaller Dynamic Island. This contradicts recent claims by Gurman that the device will feature a truly uninterrupted display with no cutouts.
Adding intrigue to how things will unfold in the coming years, Young predicts that in 2028 Apple will put all Face ID components under the panel, leaving only the selfie camera as a hole punch-style cutout in the top-left corner of the display – reminiscent of the design The Information report said would arrive in next year's Pro models.
As for the mythical all-screen design, Young doesn't expect Apple to achieve such a feat until 2030 – a full three years later.
Young has since said he is "pretty confident" in his predicted display roadmap for the iPhone through 2030, and developer Filip Vabroušek has again stepped in to help us visualize the device's evolution over the next five years. Young has also given the image his thumbs-up.
Notably, Vabroušek's image merges two rumors by incorporating Gurman's separate claim that Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone will introduce curved glass edges and extraordinarily slim bezels. Young's sign-off on the image does not indicate that he agrees with Gurman's claim – only that he has no information about it one way or the other.
What are your thoughts on the alleged evolution of the iPhone through 2030? Confused? Disillusioned? Apathetic? As always, let us know in the comments.
