iPhone 5 engineering drawings appear on the web

With no more rumors to report about the iPad 2, and everyone in the U.S. able to buy Apple’s 2nd gen tablet today, our attention can turn to the iPhone 5.
It’s therefore quite fitting that some new engineering drawings have appeared on the web from China for Apple’s next phone update. These drawings are usually given out to 3rd-party manufacturers who use them as a base for designing products like cases, stands, and anything else you can think of that clips on or encases a smartphone.

While there’s little in the way of specific details, what all these drawings make clear is that Apple has definitely gone with an edge-to-edge display.
It has been speculated before that Apple wants to include a 4″ display in the iPhone 5 so as to better compete with the larger Android smartphones out there. The iPhone 4 has a 3.5″ display, but in order to increase the screen size substantially Apple would need to increase the size of the phone. However, by reducing the bezel on the front of the case it is possible to fit a larger screen in the same area. If these drawings are correct, then that’s exactly what Apple has chosen to do, therefore retaining the overall look and feel of the iPhone across generations.

News earlier this month that Apple was switching from a glass back casing to aluminium for its construction also suggested the back of the phone would be rounded. These engineering drawings show a flat back, but it could still be manufactured from aluminum.
iPhone 5 is expected to be unveiled at an event in June or July this year. If these drawings are final we could be seeing a phone with a gorgeous new, larger retina display.