Come September 2023 and Apple is expected to unveil the next-generation of iPhones, likely to be called iPhone 15 series. The upcoming iPhone 15 lineup is rumoured to include the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max smartphones.

According to research firm Barclays, Apple supplier Cirrus Logic has hinted at the iPhone 15 Pro devices featuring haptic buttons.

The Texas-based semiconductor company in a letter to shareholders this month said it continues to “engage with a strategic customer” and expects to “bring a new HPMS component to market in smartphones next year.” HPMS stands for Cirrus Logic’s high-performance mixed-signal chips driven by haptic drivers for the Taptic Engine in iPhones.

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During an investor note earlier this week, Barclays analysts Blayne Curtis and Tom O’Malley said, the upcoming component is likely to be a part of additional Taptic Engines for the haptic buttons on iPhone 15 Pro models:

“The biggest change to our thinking here is to model $1 of new content in the IP15 Pro models. To be clear, the company hasn’t said much here other than that the chip is a mixed signal and not in the power domain. When looking at potential use cases, the largest change in new iPhone models next year is the removal of the buttons, which would require additional drivers for the haptics engine, making it the most likely use case for new content.”

What are Haptic buttons?
Haptic buttons on iPhones are said to feature better water resistance and claim to eliminate moving parts that can wear out or break over time. However, the base models– iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are still expected to come integrated with mechanical buttons.

Last month, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the upcoming iPhone 15 Pro devices will come integrated with solid-state volume and power buttons. Apple is perhaps planning to bring another radical change to its iPhone 15 series as it is planning to do away with physical buttons.

According to a report by Phonearena, the Cupertino based-giant is reportedly working on a display technology that aims to remove physical buttons on Apple devices. The company is planning to design dedicated surfaces on iPhones that will be undetectable under normal circumstances to replace the physical buttons. These undetectable surfaces will include micro-perforations that will allow light to pass through them.

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