Sam Oliver
Apple is allegedly gearing up to launch its new low-cost iPhone in the near future, with key suppliers now said to be shipping components, including 28-nanometer processors from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
An alleged low-cost iPhone rear shell, first revealed in April.
In addition to TSMC, Largan Precision is said to be providing an 8-megapixel camera for the device, while Foxconn is reportedly supplying the battery module and most of the inner frame, and Taiflex Scientific is responsible for the device's flexible circuit. The details come from a report this week by the Commercial Times, which was highlighted on Thursday by Macotakara.
It was said that companies are now shipping a "large number" of parts, and "intensive delivery" is currently underway. Other alleged suppliers noted by the report are Kinsus, SPIL, Texas Instruments, Renesas Electronics, and Chipbond.
Apple is said to be preparing to have a large number of handsets ready for the second half of the year, to compensate for the fact that it did not introduce any new major products in the first half of 2013. The report claimed that Apple could make the new low-end iPhone available as soon as August.
The details come on the heels of a separate report that claimed the new low-cost iPhone will adopt color saturations similar to Apple's official "Bumper" cases for the iPhone 4. Rumored colors are the established black and white, joined by pink, blue, and orange.
Market watchers have predicted that Apple could sell a new low-end iPhone model for $399 without a service contract without negatively affecting its gross margins. Such a device could appeal to customers who prefer not to sign a new two-year cellular service contract in order to subsidize the price of a new handset.
With the launch of multiple new iPhones anticipated for this fall, it's likely that Apple will begin production in the near future as it gears up for their official debuts. Last year, Apple introduced and made available the iPhone 5 in September.
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73 Comments
I find the prospects of a low-cost iPhone interesting -- may help Apple grab more of the low cost market away from Windows and Android and win the lower-priced market kinda like they did with the MP3 market by releasing the iPod shuffle and iPod mini. I created a comic that mentions this low-cost iPhone and the rumored iWatch and will add more comics -- trying to make my long-time Apple interest more productive You can see it here: http://www.technewshound.com/2013/06/apple-iwatch.html
Well...yeah. Think of this, if the trends continue, the iPhone 4 will be discontinued this summer and the 4s will be the new free on contract phone. It'll also be the only device sporting a 30-pin connector (ignoring the iPod Classic, which Apple seems fine to do) and the only iOS device with the old screen. Making a new device for the low end would reduce the number of parts and pieces being made. This probably isn't so much a new iPhone as a new iPhone 4s - not that there's anything wrong with that.
Methinks there shall be a lot of crow eating on this site for all the people who said that there is no way that Apple would ever do this.
I'm still not convinced it will be plastic or as ugly as some of these mockups seem. But $399 for basically a rebodied 4S sounds about right. I'm sure a lot of the graphical elements of iOS 7 will be turned off to differentiate the new cheaper phone from the higher end 5 and 5S.
I'm wondering when Apple is going to sign up China Mobile.