Less than two months after the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus debuted, news of the iPhone 7 lineup already circulated. However, unlike other rumors, this one has a strong likelihood of materializing.
KGI securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, whose predictions for Apple's device releases have thus far been spot on, has published a new report on his predictions for Apple's releases in 2016. Prior to discussing the iPhone 7, Kuo brought out his suspicion of Apple's yet-to-be-released 4-inch handheld, which according to him will be fitted with an A9 SoC and due for a release on the first half of 2016.
"As there is still demand for a 4-inch iPhone, we believe Apple will upgrade this product line," MacRumors quotes Kuo. "Because the iPhone 5s is more popular than the iPhone 5c, we think Apple is likely to launch an upgraded iPhone 5s."
Kuo went on to predict that Apple will manufacture the alleged 4-inch phone with a metal casing. The A9 SoC prediction spurred Kuo's forecast of an iOS 10 compatibility. Moreover, the analyst anticipates that the prospected handheld will not support 3D Touch so Apple can set it apart from its current flagships. Kuo expects Apple to roll out 20 to 30 million units of the purported 4-inch phone throughout 2016.
As for the iPhone 7, the mostly spot-on forecaster predicts that it will be a full refresh. Not only does Kuo envision the iPhone 7 to be equipped with an A10 SoC, he goes on further by predicting that the iPhone 7 Plus will have 2GB and 3GB of RAM for obvious performance reasons due to a larger display. Both handhelds are suspected for a release in the third quarter of 2016.
He also predicts that Apple will source the 2016 iPhone components from Foxconn, which is the prospected supplier for the purported 4-inch handheld, and TSMC that is likely to be the only provider of the A9 and A10 SoCs due to issues "chipgate" caused by outsourcing to different chip manufacturers.
