iPhone 8 release date, specs rumors: Apple's flagship phone to feature OLED display like Galaxy S8, Pixel 2

Amee Florence Payno Wednesday, February 01, 2017

An Apple logo hangs above the entrance to the Apple store on 5th Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City on July 21, 2015. | Reuters/Mike Segar

Tech giants, such as Samsung, Apple, and Google, are reportedly set to launch their new flagship smartphones this year. The Galaxy S8 is expected to be released in mid-April, while the Pixel 2 is expected to arrive in October. The iPhone 8, on the other hand, will reportedly arrive in September.

All three phone families are known to have their own distinct features, but they're expected to be similar in some of their other characteristics. As reported by BGR, one of the key components that will be shared by all 2017 flagship phones from the three tech giants is their screens' OLED display.

On Tuesday, Jan. 31, DisplayMate's Raymond Soneira published a report in which he claimed that there will be a big shift toward OLED screens this year. Nevertheless, there will still be notable differences in how the OLED panel will work in each flagship phone.

Apple's iPhone 8, in particular, is expected to feature a curved OLED screen. Like its predecessor, the upcoming flagship phone from Apple will most likely support DCI-P3 and will deliver an aspect ratio of 2.0 (a significant upgrade from 1.78). This means the screen's resolution could go up to 2160 x 1080 or 2880 x 1440.

The iPhone 8 is also expected to be equipped with Retina display, much like before. The smartphone will also likely feature a large, edge-to-edge curved display.

As reported by wccftech, Tim Arcury of Cowen & Company believes that the OLED orders from the iPhone 8 will make for a $50 million expense on the company's income statement. This expense will reportedly cause the company's gross margins to stay at 39 percent year-over-year.

Aside from its OLED display, the iPhone 8 is also rumored to be equipped with other state-of-the-art features, such as facial recognition and wireless charging. The gadget is also expected to drop the physical Home Button which will be replaced by a digital button incorporated in the gadget's screen.

Apple's iPhone 8 is due for release sometime in September 2017.