October 30, 2025, 10:36 am | Read time: 2 minutes
Apple is already preparing for the iPhone 20. In 2027, the iPhone will celebrate its 20th anniversary, and the company is apparently planning major changes for the occasion.
Haptic Instead of Physical Buttons
According to the leaker Instant Digital on the Chinese blog platform Weibo, the iPhone 20 will only feature haptic buttons, replacing all existing physical buttons. The concept is not new and has been anticipated for several new iPhone models in the past–most recently the 16 Pro. The “buttonless” iPhone strongly resembles a concept smartphone from Xiaomi that has been rumored for years but has yet to be released.
According to Instant Digital, Apple has already completed functionality testing and plans mass production for 2027. In the new design, all buttons–side button, volume buttons, action button, and camera control–will be touch-sensitive surfaces. To confirm inputs, haptic feedback similar to the Home button on older iPhones is planned.
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Recently, instead of eliminating physical buttons, Apple has been adding more to the iPhone. The iPhone 15 introduced the action button, and the iPhone 16 added camera control. The latter is already an example of what future haptic buttons might look like. While the button can be pressed, it has a capacitive layer that can detect half-presses and swipe gestures. Camera control is expected to be replaced with a fully capacitive button as early as the iPhone 18.
iPhone 20 with a Completely New Design
Not only is Apple expected to skip the iPhone 19, but the anniversary model will also feature a fresh design. As TECHBOOK reported earlier this year, the device could come with rounded display glass extending to the edge of the casing, making the display appear completely borderless. Face ID and the selfie camera are expected to be under the display, eliminating the need for a Dynamic Island cutout.
However, it will be quite some time before the design of the iPhone 20 is finalized. In the meantime, a lot could still change.