As much as Apple's iPhone has evolved over the years, one thing has stayed the same: The physical home button. But that could soon change.
Word has it that Apple is thinking about ditching the physical home button in favor of a new digital option. DigiTimes on Monday reported that Apple is developing new "touch and display driver integration (TDDI) single-chip solutions for its iPhones." These new chips would come with integrated fingerprint sensors, allowing Apple to design future iPhones without a home button.
"The integrated design would fit into future iPhone designs – models with ultra-thin and ultra-narrow displays, and with a whole plane design eliminating the Home button," the Taiwanese newspaper reported.
The report also suggests that Apple is looking to do more chip development in-house. As AppleInsider notes, this isn't all that surprising, given that Cupertino already custom designs the A-series processors used in its iPhone and iPad. But now Apple is said to be working on its own touch and display driver chips as well.
DigiTimes' sources in Taiwan's semiconductor industry reckon that "the likely expansion of [Apple's] in-house design business will have a significant impact on the global semiconductor industry landscape."
It should be noted, however, that DigiTimes has a spotty track record with Apple rumors, so whether this actually comes to pass remains to be seen. Besides that, rumors about the demise of the iPhone home button have been swirling for years, but it still lives on.