Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone is still getting a glass redesign: Report

Apple may still be working on its glass-focused iPhone redesign for 2027, despite a recent report claiming the project was cancelled. Here's what we know.

Apple's plans for a major iPhone redesign in 2027 may not be cancelled after all. A recent report had claimed that the company had dropped its plans for an all-glass iPhone due to manufacturing problems. However, a new Bloomberg report suggests that Apple is still working on a major design change for the iPhone's 20th anniversary.

The iPhone first arrived in 2007, which means 2027 will mark 20 years of Apple's smartphone. And it looks like the company still has something different planned for the occasion.

Glass-focused iPhone coming?

According to the report, Apple is developing an iPhone that will use glass on the front and back, with the material potentially extending around the sides as well. A metal band could still remain in the middle of the phone.

The tech giant had reportedly explored an even more ambitious design that would make the iPhone almost entirely glass. However, Apple is said to have faced manufacturing issues while trying to connect the glass panels and produce the phone at the scale it needs. That particular concept may have been dropped, but the broader glass-focused redesign appears to still be in development.

Why was the glass iPhone reportedly cancelled?

The latest report comes after Jefferies analyst Edison Lee claimed that Apple's all-glass iPhone project had been cancelled. According to his supply chain checks, the biggest problem was production yield. In simple terms, Apple was reportedly finding it difficult to manufacture enough units without defects.

The earlier rumours around the 20th anniversary iPhone had pointed towards a much bigger design change, including curved glass, fewer visible cutouts and potentially under-display Face ID. However, the latest information does not confirm that Apple is going ahead with every one of those features.

It also means the two reports aren't necessarily completely contradictory. Apple could have dropped the most difficult version of the design while continuing to work on a more practical glass-heavy version.

What can we expect from the 20th anniversary iPhone?

The exact design is still unclear, but Apple is expected to give the iPhone a significant visual change in 2027. The company is known to work on major iPhone designs well ahead of launch, so development for the 2027 models would already be underway. However, the design could still change if Apple runs into manufacturing or engineering problems.

There have also been reports that the 20th anniversary lineup could include a second-generation foldable iPhone, although details remain limited. For now, the important takeaway is that Apple does not appear to have completely abandoned its glass-focused iPhone plans. The company may simply be moving away from the most complicated version of the design.

With the iPhone turning 20 in 2027, Apple is expected to make the occasion count. How much of the original glass iPhone concept actually makes it to the final product, however, is something we'll have to wait to see.

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