Apple was rumored to introduce solid-state buttons with the iPhone 15 lineup, but the change never made it to the real world. However, this does not mean that the company never had intentions of introducing static buttons to the iPhone lineup. A prototype iPhone with unknown branding on the back appeared to have surfaced online, and it aimed to highlight the solid-state volume and power buttons with haptic feedback.
The discovery was made by AppleDemoYT, which shared the video of the unbranded iPhone prototype. The device was sourced from a facility that recycles electronics. The iPhone is called "Vesica Piscis" because it does not feature an Apple logo on the back and instead appears to be two recent moons facing each other. The YouTuber gives a different explanation of the device, highlighting the mathematical shape formed when two circular disks overlap, called "Vesica Piscis."
The YouTuber opened up the device and found out that it contained certain components from the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 14 lineup, but it also contained electronics that did not belong to any. One of the key changes on the device is the solid-state buttons with haptic feedback, a feature that was supposed to debut with the launch of the iPhone 15 lineup but never saw daylight.
As you can see in the video, the volume buttons are not segregated, and instead, the company went for an elongated solution. The SIM card tray is quite smaller than what we are used to, and it was tightly packed with the help of screws. The writing on the side of the device indicates that it was at a "Ranger" prototype stage, which was part of the company's field testing.
The internal components in the device are nonfunctional, especially the cameras, and there are only a few internal cables that connect those components to the logic board. The logic board is a hybrid one and sits between the iPhone 13 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro, according to the YouTuber. He tried to turn the prototype iPhone on, but it displayed a message about the microcontroller initialization being completed. The device is also labeled as Bender when connected to a Mac and does not respond to anything.
According to the serial number on the device, the device was built in May 2021, but considering the time frame, the iPhone 13 Pro was already finalized. It appears to be a testing device for Apple for various tasks, and the solid-state buttons are part of it. It could be the iPhone 14 Pro's prototype, but it is very hard to exactly identify the product's identity. We will share more details on the prototype iPhone and Apple's solid-state buttons for future iPhones as soon as further information is available.