iPhone 7S may get thicker to fit in more goodies

Apple's incremental iPhone refresh may come with an incremental size increase, too.

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In addition to the iPhone 8, Apple is rumored to announce the iPhone 7S and 7S Plus next month as a modest upgrade to last year's iPhone 7. Apple's S-cycle phones usually keep a similar design to the original, but according to a report from German site Giga.de, the iPhone 7S may be bigger than the 7 in all three dimensions -- by mere tenths of a milimeter.

Although the change is tiny, the report speculates that the phone will gain extra girth if Apple uses a glass backing for the iPhone 7S. Glass backing could allow it to work with wireless charging, a long-awaited feature that's rumored to come to Apple's next batch of iPhones.

The iPhone 7S is said to be the cheaper alternative to the iPhone 8, which is also whispered to gain more premium features, like a nearly bezel-less front, OLED display and AR capabilities. If the iPhone 8's premium features lead to a premium price and limited availability, the iPhone 7S would be Apple's way to give buyers two price options.

This wouldn't be the first time Apple nominally increased the size of the phone. But if might mean buyers will have to also pick up a new case if the old one is too snug to fit. Then again, most cases were still transferable when Apple made the iPhone 6S slightly thicker than the iPhone 6 at the time the pressure-sensitive 3D Touch screen was introduced.

One way that the iPhone 7S may get smaller, according to Giga.de's source, is by reducing the depth of the rear camera bump. The change would be tiny (only a quarter of a millimeter) but it may help the phone look and feel sleeker and more uniform as a whole.

Although we have yet to hear an exact date, Apple is expected to host its next iPhone event some time in September. We'll get official details about the next batch of iPhones then.

Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

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