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Massive iPhone leak explains how one of the iPhone 8’s most important features works

Published Aug 10th, 2017 6:50AM EDT

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When the iPhone 8 launches this September it will bring over a few features never before seen on an Apple smartphone. The handset will have an almost edge-to-edge display, though a cameras-and-speakers protrusion at the top will steal away some real estate from the massive screen. The new iPhone design also kills the home button, which happens to be one of the most used iPhone elements to interact with iPhones.

But just because the physical home button is going away, that doesn’t mean that any of the features associated with it will disappear. And thanks to Apple’s biggest iPhone leak in years, we have an idea of how the virtual home button will work.

Developer Steven Troughton-Smith, who’s at the forefront of iPhone 8 discoveries from the leaked HomePod code, took to Twitter to post more information about how iOS 11 will handle the new home button.

He found evidence that suggests that Apple developed a special UI for the home button. Rather than a button, we’re looking at a home button area that can resize and offer tab bars under it.

The home button area will disappear to accommodate content on the screen, which is what we’d expect from it. After all, you wouldn’t want a digital home button to hover allover apps, especially games and video that can take up the entire screen.

Here’s a mockup of what it could look like:

The developer also says that there’s no evidence to suggest that app UI can be associated with the home button area, as some speculated in the past.

Troughton-Smith also says that Apple may have devised a home button design that contrasts well with all kinds of backgrounds.

Apple will probably dedicate plenty of time to the home button during its September iPhone event, given its importance for navigating iOS.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.