Apple’s next iPhone: facial-recognition and all-screen design, leaks suggest

Details discovered by developers in firmware for Apple's HomePod speaker show in-development iPhone with IR face unlocking and bezel-less design

The next version of Apple's iPhone will have infrared-based facial recognition unlocking - eliminating need for a passcode or fingerprint - and will have an almost all-screen design on the front, say developers digging into the pre-release of firmware distributed by Apple.

The firmware for the upcoming HomePod smart speaker, which is due for release at the end of the year, was pushed out via Apple's developer system last week. It was found to contain references to other devices in its code, including the next version of the iPhone. It is unclear whether the HomePod firmware was distributed intentionally for developers to start building systems to interact with the speaker ahead of release or leaked by accident by Apple.