Photographic evidence allegedly shows smaller notch for this year's 5G iPhone series

It really does appear as though we will see a smaller notch on the Apple iPhone 13 series. Back on March 23rd, we showed you glass panels that are allegedly from the upcoming 2021 iPhone series including a 5.4-inch panel for the mini, a 6.1-inch panel for the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro, and a 6.7-inch  display for the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The image shows a smaller notch for all three panels compared to each model's iPhone 12 counterpart.

Today, a Twitter member named Duan Rui (@duanrui1205) posted images of what is allegedly a glass panel for the iPhone 13. Once again, the notch looks to be smaller and by moving the space needed for the speaker to the edge of the glass, the cameras on the notch can cuddle a little closer. This is what gives Apple the ability to reduce the size of the notch.

On his Twitter account, Rui points out that he grabs his images from social media which is the case here. The images that accompany this article were posted on Twitter after first appearing on Weibo. We should note that there are no markings that would indicate that the glass panels in the photos are actually earmarked for the iPhone 13 series.

Of course, there is the possibility that the glass panel in the photo that accompanies this story is not really related to the iPhone 13 even though it does look similar to the pictures that we showed you last month. There are still approximately five months before the 2021 iPhone line is introduced leaving plenty of time for some more leaks to appear that could provide us with verification about the legitimacy of these panels.

The panels could be prototype screen protectors from a third-party accessory company. If so, the dimensions used to create the prototype are usually taken from rumors and even photos of the most recent models which would be the iPhone 12 series. Note that in the photos that compare the glass panels to an iPhone 12 model, the notch is visibly smaller.

If you're wondering when we could see a notchless iPhone hit the shelves, it might happen as early as next year. Prescient analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said earlier this year that we could see the notch gone by 2022 when the iPhone 14 series arrives. Replacing the notch could be a punch-hole for selfies with an in-display camera replacing the one used for Face ID.

The first iPhone to sport the notch was 2017's iPhone X although that was not the first phone to have one. The Android powered Essential PH-1 is considered to be the first handset to have a notch.

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