iPhone 7 launch event invite could indicate that rumours about Apple’s new camera are correct

The invite uses the ‘bokeh’ effect – which, notably, is just the kind of advantage you get from the dual-lens camera that Apple is rumoured to be introducing

Apple's invite to its 2016 event (Apple)

It isn’t an Apple event without wild speculation. But this year Apple seems to have done its best to get people talking.

The invitations to its biggest event of the year have gone out. On 7 September, journalists will descend on San Francisco to be told about the iPhone 7, and likely the Apple Watch 2 and other products as well.

And two things stand out about the otherwise mysterious and information-free invitation. First, the Apple logo is made out of blurry circles; second, the bottom reads “See you on the 7th”.

Those blurry circles, as well as the mention of “see”, might be an important hint about what’s coming in the new phone.

The image appears to be making heavy use of the “bokeh” effect, that can be seen on good cameras when something blurs because it is out of focus. On a phone, such an image will just be fuzzy; on a DSLR, it will go pleasingly round, and the effect is often pursued on purpose.

Apple’s invite appears to be indicating that the new phone will be able to achieve that second effect, using its rumoured two lenses to bring a more professional-style look. Other phones have done that in the past, and Apple is expected to concentrate on the camera while selling the new phone.

The emphasis on the “7th” – the invitations don’t normally have dates on, and would usually be expected to write out seventh instead – is probably meant as as a way of emphasising the iPhone 7 branding.

That helps confirm that the name of the phone will be iPhone 7, as widely expected. And it also makes all but certain that the phone will be the centre of the event – something that would be hard to doubt, given Apple’s track record.

Taken together, it also does suggest that the blurry branding of the invitation is related to the iPhone. That’s not always the case – last year, for instance, Apple themed its invites around Siri, but that was a hint of what was coming for the Apple TV introduced at the same event, rather than the phone.

Of note is the one white circle that sits alongside the Apple logo, and wouldn’t normally have been expected to be there. It isn’t clear why that’s there – or whether it will ever be explained – but some have suggested that it might refer to the missing headphone jack or something else entirely.