Overview
- Multiple outlets reported on July 21, 2026 that Weibo leaker Digital Chat Station and supply‑chain sources say Apple is internally testing a display with a physical diagonal of about 6.96 inches that would likely be marketed as 7 inches.
- The alleged panel is said to keep the same screen ratio as the current iPhone 17 Pro Max, which means the change would be a modest diagonal increase rather than a different shape.
- Coverage links the larger panel to wider design goals for the anniversary model, including a quad‑curved glass edge and a near‑borderless, hole‑style camera layout.
- Journalists and analysts caution the panel is at a prototype and supply‑chain evaluation stage and that Apple routinely trials many components that do not reach production, so use, naming and model placement remain unconfirmed.
- The report is significant because it signals the direction of Apple’s long‑term design goals and could affect user experience, battery and pricing decisions, but any final product is still more than a year away with the iPhone 18 series due this September.