The Apple iPhone 6s leaks continue pouring on us like a summer rain, and this latest one reveals that the iPhone 6s will feature a new NFC chip that is likely to have a security part built right in the silicon. There are two other important revelations: first one is an image of an internal storage chip with a 16GB capacity that is a strong hint towards the new iPhone 6s family shipping with 16 gigs of storage for the base model, and the second one is exact dimensions for the new phones, showing a miniature change in sizes that is so minuscule that it basically means that current iPhone 6 cases should fit the iPhone 6s design. How reliable are these leaks? While one can never be 100% certain about leaked material that is not official, this latest leak comes from 9to5Mac, a website with practically an impeccable track record. Some of the analysis of the components show in this leaks also comes from the reliable Chipworks, a company we know best for its microscopic images of chips and their inner workings.
First, the new NFC chip in the iPhone 6S is made by NXP and has the 66VP2 model number, said to be an upgrade over the NXP 65V10 NFC module in the iPhone 6. One of its benefits is said to be that it has a secure chip built right in the main one, obliterating the need for a separate security chip required in the current iPhone 6. Overall, cutting chips where it's possible is one signature element of this new iPhone 6s family design - this way Apple can have more simplicity and, hopefully, more efficient power management.
Chip manufacturers that will retain their positions in the iPhone 6s are expected to be:
- Cirrus Logic for the audio chip
- Murata for the Wi-Fi module
- RFMD, Triquint, Avago and Skyworks for wireless power amplifiers
- Bosch and InvenSense accelerometer and gyroscope
The second big news is that we are likely to have no increase in the storage of the base iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus models. A picture of a leaked early device shows a Toshiba flash chip built on the 19nm process with 16GB of capacity.
Finally, we are also learning that the iPhone 6s might be 0.13mm thicker than the iPhone 6s, a change related to the minimal added thickness for the Force Touch sensor. The 6S could also end up being 0.16mm taller than the current iPhone 6 and 0.13mm wider. Once again, we should stress that those are such miniature differences that users won't be able to see and feel in real use. Also, such small changes mean that current cases would still fit the new iPhone 6S.
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