iPhone 5S: Camera, Home Button, Impressive Battery Life Highlighted in Leaked Specs Sheet

A leaked marketing specs sheet may have highlighted some of the key iPhone 5S features ahead of the Tuesday unveiling of Apple’s flagship smartphone. The iPhone 5S will lead Apple’s lineup of new devices alongside a more budget-oriented iPhone 5C that’s made with a plastic shell. Like the iPhone 5, the iPhone 5S will retain its predecessor’s sleel aluminum design with a large 4-inch Retina Display glass front.

With this leaked specs sheet originating out of China, if the information revealed is true we may have the earliest confirmations of some of the key features of this highly anticipated iPhone model.

According to SlashGear, we can expect the iPhone 5S to have a dual LED flash, a camera that could keep the same 8-megapixel resolution but with a wider f/2.0 aperture lens and support for 1080p HD video recording. The front-facing camera may be a 1.2-megapixel camera for FaceTime chat. Earlier leaks suggested a possible 12- or even 13-megapixel camera.

If the camera specs are accurate, this may be disappointing news for some users who expect more dramatic camera improvements. Apple’s rivals have been working on camera innovations that include better low light sensitivity, Xenon flash, optical image stabilization, and higher megapixel count for loss-less zooming and for capturing more details in images. The improvements here would be modest as the iPhone 5 has an 8-megapixel camera with an f/2.4 aperture and single LED flash. The dual LED flash would allow the iPhone 5S to have a brighter flash for low light photographer and the wider aperture may come in handy for low light images without requiring the use of a flash.

The leaked specs sheet also confirms the leaked fingerprint scanner that is the highlight of this year’s model. It’s been long rumored that the S in iPhone 5S stands for security, and the fingerprint sensor is a hallmark of that marketing claim. The fingerprint sensor has been rumored to be built into the home button, and from the leaked sheet we can see that Apple has changed the design of the home button.

While still circular, we no longer see a square icon with rounded corner on the home button. Earlier leaks suggest Apple would use a convex design with sapphire glass for the home button and integrated fingerprint sensor, but more recent leaks suggest that Apple would use a subtle metallic ring around the button as part of the new design.

Additionally, it looks like the iPhone 5S would have a battery life of about 250 hours on standby when the device is not actively in use.

Still unclear is what colors the device will come in. Recent leaks suggest that this year we can see the iPhone 5S in the typical black and white color options alongside a new champagne gold hue. It’s unclear if the champagne gold option will be available worldwide or if it’s an exclusive color for the Chinese market.

Apple will host its iPhone 5S unveiling on September 10th, so we’re about a day away from knowing for sure what the final specs will be. Other rumors specs for the phone include an NFC sensor along with an option for a 128 GB maximum storage capacity on the smartphone.

The device will also usher in iOS 7 to consumers.