iPhone 8 design leak: This is what Android is up against in Q3 2017

The threat of the new iPhone is looming over Android, peeking through the clouds. We’ve seen and heard various rumors about it, including that it may come with a bezel-less design like the Xiaomi Mi MIX, Galaxy S8 and, most recently, Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone.

It may still be a few weeks away, but a fresh leak from Evan Blass (@evleaks) has given us a glimpse at what it just might look like; check it out below.

iPhone 8 (encased) http://pic.twitter.com/9LpARCAML2

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) August 8, 2017

The render depicts what is believed to be one of the new iPhone devices inside a bulky case (Apple is said to be readying a curved-screen device for later this year too). Its appearance is similar to that of Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone, with the screen wrapping around the cameras and speaker at the top of the handset.

It’s difficult to get a firm grasp of the true bezel size while the phone is pictured in a case, but there clearly isn’t inches above and below the screen. In other words, the bezels might be even slimmer than they are on the rival Galaxy S8 (pictured below). You may also notice the omission of the typical iPhone home button — just like the approach Samsung took with its Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus earlier this year.

The new iPhone will no doubt present huge competition for the Galaxy Note 8, Huawei Mate 10 and LG V30 — the major Android flagships phones also due to be released before the end of the year — and I feel like I can already see what’s going to happen. Those who aren’t familiar with the Android phones bearing similar designs are going to see that iPhone and think… how do I put this… that Apple has done something more impressive than it really has?

Don’t get me wrong, The phone in the Evan Blass render above looks sexy, and designing such a device — and potentially achieving the highest screen-to-body ratio of the handsets released this year — is no small feat. The iPhone 8 would rightly deserve praise for accomplishing that.

The point I’m trying to make is, the iPhone 8 wouldn’t be the only smartphone with thin bezels on the market, but it’s probably going to seem like that to a lot of onlookers (that’s not to suggest that consumers are willfully ignorant, just that Apple is such a powerful brand). It’s going to be far easier for Apple to wow people with the design of its latest iPhone than it is for Essential, LG, or Huawei to do the same with their phones, even if they offer something similar in terms of aesthetics.

People were flocking to buy iPhones even when their appearance remained largely unchanged for two years. With that design and Apple’s marketing power, I’d be surprised if the iPhone 8 didn’t smash the competition until next year.

That’s my take on the prospects of the upcoming iPhone, but what are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments.