"Kuo has a strong track record that makes him particularly convincing," says The Verge. In the past he has correctly predicted the launch of the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones, as well both sizes of the Apple Watch, the new 12-inch MacBook, and absolutely everything about the iPhone 6S. But, "he's not always right at the right time" they claim – "he didn't think the 5.5-inch iPhone would arrive until later in 2015". When it comes to the iPhone 7, Kuo's predictions are quite safe and not particularly stirring. According to Mac Rumors, he foresees an upgraded A10 chip for the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, with the Plus model getting 3GB of RAM instead of 2GB to differentiate it as the top-end device. "If Apple does launch a total of three devices next year" contends The Verge, "the iPhone lineup will look oddly similar to Sony's Xperia trio, although even Sony thinks a 4-inch smartphone is too small for today's market".
But the idea of an iPhone Mini has gone down well with some critics. "While the product strategy would be similar to the cheaper iPhone 5c model that Apple introduced in 2013," says ZDNet's Kevin Tofel, "there's one key difference: the iPhone 5c was the same size as the then-new iPhone 5s." "A 4-inch iPhone in 2016, however," Tofel adds, "would cater to those who want the iOS experience but don't want it on a handset with a 4.7 or 5.5-inch screen." Rumours circulated of a smaller iPhone 6S ahead of Apple's September 2015 launch, but it never emerged.
Macworld predicted last month that Apple will release a 4.7-inch (called the iPhone 7) and a 5.5-inch model (the iPhone 7 Plus) next year. "If Apple does make another 4-inch iPhone (which, thanks to the success of the larger iPhones, is by no means a certainty)," it said, "then we think it'll be called something like the iPhone 7 mini."