Apple has traditionally released an iPhone every September. As the deadline looms, speculations fly as to when the iPhone 6 will be formally introduced.
Supply chain sources have earlier reported that Apple has placed an order for 80 million units of the iPhone 6; even instructing suppliers to stock up on enough parts for 120 million units to ensure the initial order will be fulfilled even with failures during assembly. However, the 4.7-inch variant was said to start production in July while the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 won't be seeing assembly lines until August or September.
If that's the case then, the 5.5-inch variant will not be available in time for the customary September reveal. As it is, the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 is already more complicated to manufacture than the 4.7-inch model, so it will definitely take longer to produce. If Apple had wanted the two models of the iPhone 6 to be launched at the same time, the 5.5-inch variant should have entered production sooner.
Apple will definitely release iOS 8 as planned and surely the 4.7-inch variant will be part of the agenda, but the big question now is if the bigger iPhone 6 will even see the light of day this year. There's no doubt that Apple will be pushing through with the 5.5-inch model but reports are saying that the bigger iPhone 6 may be delayed until 2015.
"Production bottlenecks on 4.7-inch iPhone 6 center on the yield rate of in-cell touch panel and metal casing. As in-cell touch panel becomes larger in size, the edge of the panel may become insensitive to touch," commented Ming-Chi Kuo, a KGI Securities analyst. It's possible for the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 to be released after October but quantities will be very limited, he adds.
Supply chain sources confirm the late arrival of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6, but say it is merely to avoid competition with the 4.7-inch variant. "The different timetables have been set as Apple does not want to repeat the mistake it made in 2013 when it launched the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c simultaneously," clarified the sources. Apple is not having problems with production.
Last year, Apple released the iPhone 5c and 5s at the same time. Both fared well in the market but the company was unable to anticipate the bigger demand for the iPhone 5s, leading to problems with supply.
