iOS Code Shows Apple Is Experimenting With High-Speed, Light-Based Li-Fi Internet Connection For The iPhone

The iPhone 7 is set to roll out later this year and it may feature the Wi-Fi descendant Li-Fi. Based on some telling code inside iOS 9.1, Apple seems to be making ongoing efforts to bring the tech to the market.

iOS 9.1's library code makes reference to Light Fidelity technology. Although that alone doesn't mean the next iPhone will feature the technology, it certainly suggests that Apple is starting to build Li-Fi support into the company's mobile operating system.

The curious library code was sniffed out by Twitter user Chase Fromm, who concluded that "Li-Fi testing is already imminent."

Li-Fi may be regarded by many as a descendant of Wi-Fi, but it isn't a successor. There are some serious logistical issues that may make the technology more of a compliment than a competitor.

Li-Fi is based on light, a fast data carrier. Discrete pulses of visible light can be used to transmit signals, which can be converted into data. What makes Li-Fi especially appealing is the speeds at which it could transmit data, which can clock in at up to 224 Gbps.

On top of its speed, Li-Fi could also blend into rooms by being embedded into light fixtures. A light bulb in a dining room or kitchen could provide either space with lightning fast data transfers. However, the technology hasn't yet been proven for outdoor applications.

Harald Haas, a professor from University of Edinburgh, introduced the world to light fidelity and the term "Li-Fi" at a TED talk in 2011.

"All we need to do is fit a small microchip to every potential illumination device and this would then combine two basic functionalities: illumination and wireless data transmission," Haas said at the time.

If the iPhone 7 included Li-Fi, it would put Apple near or at the very front end of the technology's curve. So far, no one else has brought Li-Fi to market as those closest to doing so are still deep in research and development.