Microscopic analysis, iOS 8 code point to new 4.7-inch 'iPhone 6' display resolutions

According to Russian luxury iPhone modification reseller Feld & Volk, the image above shows a close-up view of Apple's purported 4.7-inch iPhone 6 display with a 1 mm reference box overlaid on top of a grid of pixels, which the firm claims is evidence of a 1,704-by-906 resolution.

As noted by MacRumors, however, counting up the individual pixels within the bounded area comes out to 13 pixels in horizontal and vertical directions, much less than the 16 pixels per millimeter required for Feld & Volk's estimate. By comparison, the current iPhone 5s display boasts a 1,136-by-640-pixel resolution, or about 10.5 pixels per millimeter.

Perhaps offering consensus on the matter is new code discovered in Apple's latest Xcode 6 SDK. Spotted by 9to5Mac earlier today, a file containing instructions for iOS 8's Springboard, more commonly referred to as the iOS home screen, includes mention of a 414-by-736-pixel iPhone resolution.

Considering the point value method by which iPhone translates data, the actual hardware resolution would be double or triple that number, or 1,472-by-828 pixels. The new resolution from Xcode closely jibes with today's microscopic image analysis that yields a roughly 13-by-13-pixel per millimeter resolution, though a near-exact fit would come at around 14 pixels per millimeter.

All rumors will be put to bed when Apple debuts its handset or handsets next month. The company is expected to hold a special media event on Sept. 9 that will likely see the unveiling of a next-generation 4.7-inch iPhone and possibly a 5.5-inch phablet version.