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iPhone 2019 and beyond: The future of smartphones

In this article we discuss some of the paths smartphone technology could take in the coming years, starting with the iPhone that appears in 2019 (which might conceivably be called the iPhone XIs, although what naming convention Apple will be using by then is anyone's guess).
As we move further into the future our predictions will by necessity become more speculative, and many of these paths will no doubt turn out to be blind alleys. But we're happy to put on our future goggles and make some predictions about trends we're expecting in the next few years. If you want to know what kind of iPhone you'll be brandishing in the future, read on.
Most recently, sources have predicted that the iPhone X's notch will shrink or maybe disappear altogether in 2019. We're also hearing about Apple's plans to make the Lightning port waterproof - which might mean that Apple's going to change the design of the iPhone and iPad connector again. Speaking of design - we're also hearing that Apple might make a ceramic iPhone, available in different colors, read about that here.

Ceramic iPhone

A future iPhone could have a ceramic rather than metal case. An patent suggests that Apple is working on ceramic iPhone housings. The patent describes a way to manufacture ceramic iPhone bodies that are multiple colors  so perhaps it could be the future of the iPhone SE range.

Retractable screen

Apple has a patent that describes a portable device with a flexible OLED screen that upon releasing a latch retracts into two hollow casings and unfurls again when required, locking into place with support slats (a series of bistable metal members that become rigid when forced into a flat state).

Curved design

In August 2016, it was reported by Patently Apple that Apple filed patents for a curved glass iPhone with virtual buttons on the sides. If accurate, this could be somewhat like the rumored OLED bar on the expected new MacBook Pro, but time will tell.

Flexible or curved display

The Nikkei report we linked to earlier predicts that autumn of this year will see a massive triple iPhone launch, and that the flagship model of this trio will feature a curved OLED screen that curves down over the sides. This is something we've already seen on rival devices, such as Samsung's S7 Edge and Note 7; it enables more screen space to be squeezed on to a device without making it any bigger, and you can also have notifications designed to be seen or activated on the edge of the screen.