Apple Reportedly Prepping New Smart Battery Case For iPhone XS And iPhone XR
Now it looks as though Apple is ready to take another stab at the accessory three years after it launched the original. Guilherme Rambo did some digging into watchOS 5.1.2 and found a fresh icon that depicts a new Smart Battery Case. This time around, as you can see by the pill-shaped cutout for the rear cameras, this case looks to be destined for the iPhone XS.
However, it looks as there might actually be three SKUs available -- A2070, A2071 and A2171 -- to cover the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and the iPhone XR. This is just an assumption on our parts, but we'd also reckon that the iPhone XS SKU will be compatible with last year's iPhone X given the extremely close dimensions between the two phones.
Although we can't tell much from the single image of the new Smart Battery Case, it does look like the actual "battery" portion of the accessory is better integrated and doesn't seem like an afterthought.
According to Rambo, Apple plans to release all three new Smart Battery Cases this month, so expect to see the accessories available via the online Apple Store within the coming weeks. As for pricing, the original case is still priced at $99, but given Apple's penchant for jacking up prices (the Apple Pencil went from $99 to $129), we wouldn't be surprised to see the Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone X/XS/XR priced at $129 and potentially $159 or higher for the iPhone XS Max.
