Mass production of Apple's A5-, Qualcomm-powered iPhone 5 rumored for Sept.

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Apple's iPhone 5 will feature "slight modifications" from its predecessor, including an 8 megapixel rear camera and a Qualcomm baseband for both GSM and CDMA models, and will go into production in September, a new report claims.



Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo with Concord Securities issued a note on Monday offering alleged details of the next iPhone. His checks with supply chain sources indicated that the next handset from Apple will not feature an all-new-design, but rather only "slight modifications" from the iPhone 4.



Specifically, Kuo has heard that the iPhone 5 will include the faster A5 processor already found in the iPad 2, as well as a higher resolution 8 megapixel rear camera. He has also been told that Apple will switch to a Qualcomm baseband for both GSM and CDMA models, along with an improved antenna design.



Kuo has also been told that the new iPhone will go into trial production in August and mass production in September, allowing Apple to reach shipment volumes of between 28 million and 32 million units this year. That would align with previous reports that have indicated Apple plans to make its new iPhone available for sale later than usual this year, likely in Apple's next fiscal year beginning in October.



The earthquake and tsunami disaster have reportedly resulted in constrained supplies for Apple, which plans to focus components toward building the new iPhone 5 later this year. As a result of those component shortages, Kuo said to not be surprised if a new fifth-generation iPod touch is not announced as usual in September this year.



Kuo's report also presumes that Apple will unveil its fifth-generation iPhone at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference, scheduled for June 6 through 10 in San Francisco. However, other reports have indicated that Apple does not plan to introduce any new hardware at this year's event, choosing instead to focus on iOS 5 and Mac OS X 10.7 Lion software.



In addition, if Kuo's information about production in September is correct, it is highly unlikely that Apple would announce a new iPhone in June, three months before the device is even scheduled to be built in large quantities.



Regardless, Kuo said he believes the "main selling point" of the iPhone 5, due to its similar design to the iPhone 4, will be the new iOS 5 mobile operating system. Kuo expects a more dramatic hardware change to the iPhone in 2012 when the presumed sixth-generation model will arrive.



Kuo said he has heard that Apple plans a new design and greatly improved hardware specifications for the sixth-generation iPhone. Sources have also indicated that the device could go on sale in the first half of 2012, an earlier-than-usual date due to "fierce competition" with Google's Android mobile platform.



In January, Kuo correctly claimed that Apple's iPad 2 would feature the same 1024-by-768-pixel display as the first-generation iPad, and that it would use the same cameras as the iPod touch, which are of lower quality than the iPhone 4.



Kuo also said in March that Apple was set to begin production of the white iPhone 4 and ship the device in April. Last week, numerous reports confirmed that Apple will make the white iPhone 4 available for sale in the "next few weeks."
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 62
    saareksaarek Posts: 1,520member
    Hope the delayed iphone ends up like the expected to be delayed ipad 2, ie shows up on time or early.



    Still they're probably going to be proved accurate, this is going to screw up my and i'm sure many others' upgrade cycle. :-(
  • Reply 2 of 62
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by saarek View Post


    Hope the delayed iphone ends up like the expected to be delayed ipad 2, ie shows up on time or early.



    Still they're probably going to be proved accurate, this is going to screw up my and i'm sure many others' upgrade cycle. :-(



    I'm due in Nov. I'll just wait til iP6 comes out if its just a small hardware upgrade. Perfectly happy with my iP4.
  • Reply 3 of 62
    kotatsukotatsu Posts: 1,010member
    A bigger screen would be top of my wish list for iPhone 5. When I see people with Android phones with giant screens, my iPhone 4 looks a little old school...
  • Reply 4 of 62
    "Apple will not feature an all-new-design, but rather only "slight modifications" from the iPhone 4."



    i.e., they'll all be white.



    I've heard rumors re contextual navigational icons that would appear on the bezel, using e-ink (like the Kindle's screen) so they look as if they were 'printed' on, but as I say would only appear as needed. Sure would like to see that idea coming along, it's a great and important UI development. (If it's true, that is.)



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kotatsu View Post


    A bigger screen would be top of my wish list for iPhone 5. When I see people with Android phones with giant screens, my iPhone 4 looks a little old school...



    What I described above could be a way to expand the screen's functionality without changing the overall form factor (which I think Apple is more or less locked into for the time being).
  • Reply 5 of 62
    pmzpmz Posts: 3,433member
    Can I just point out that this source, just like every other, gives me every reason to believe that they are liars who make things up.



    Why such a harsh accusation? The same exact source in the same article makes the following two statements:



    1. iPhone 5 won't go into mass production until September.

    2. iPhone 5 will be introduced (aka shown off) at WWDC in June.



    Um, hello????? Think McFly, think.



    Can anyone ever imagine a scenario where Apple announces the iPhone 5 at wwdc as expected, and then says it will be available in 4 - 6 months? It's so completely impossible that I have to believe that this source is among the most unreliable garbage I've ever heard.



    Agree, AI? I mean, wtf?
  • Reply 6 of 62
    richysrichys Posts: 160member
    Sounds about right to me. The iPhone 4 is still the best looking and best constructed phone out there; so no need to dramatically change the exterior. A slight size increase for the screen (so it's pretty much edge to edge) would be nice, but not a must have for me. I haven't really seen any of these massive screened Android phones in London (must be a Yank thing -- go with your super-sized everything else!), so nothing to compare it to.



    I see the next iPhone being more akin to the 3G to 3GS move. Apple's all about refinement and evolution -- not massive changes each release.



    I also agree that the big change is going to be iOS 5. That NC data centre isn't for storing Apple's sacks of cash in!



    As for the iPods -- having an iPhone quality screen in the Touch would be good (despite being 'Retina', it's a much lower quality item), and maybe a tiny video orientated camera in the Nano. Can't see the nano getting any smaller!
  • Reply 7 of 62
    I certainly hope the Iphone 5 has LTE support. If they just have GSM/CDMA that is not going to cut it
  • Reply 8 of 62
    nceencee Posts: 857member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kotatsu View Post


    A bigger screen would be top of my wish list for iPhone 5. When I see people with Android phones with giant screens, my iPhone 4 looks a little old school...



    Once the iPad is also phone, then it won't look small next to the Android's



    Skip
  • Reply 9 of 62
    nceencee Posts: 857member
    One thing is for sure - the iphone will be making some BIG leaps soon, as it will have no choice. finally others are jumping ahead of the iPhone in some area's, and so Apple will not have much choice but to leapfrog others to get the lead again ; imo



    Skip
  • Reply 10 of 62
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by quicksilverhuh View Post


    I certainly hope the Iphone 5 has LTE support. If they just have GSM/CDMA that is not going to cut it



    LTE is not important outside the US
  • Reply 11 of 62
    " Sources have also indicated that the device could go on sale in the first half of 2012, an earlier-than-usual date due to "fierce competition" with Google's Android mobile platform."



    White iPhone 4 end April 2011, iPhone 5 Sep/Oct 2011 and iPhone 6 1st half 2012? The only way I can see this working is if iPhone 6 is for a different market, say entry-level. Even that doesn't sound right as the "previous" iPhone becomes the entry-level model up to today...



    The "other" smartphones, offer a variety of form-factors that Apple does not- with fixed or sliding keyboard, smaller size, different camera resolutions, memory, etc. It seems Apple does not want to go there, though they did with the iPod line, so who knows? A non-smart iPhone (iPhone nano?)? Just for calls and music/videos? Don't see the point, and it would HAVE to be like a previous Nano size.



    Where I live (Cyprus), there is no iTunes store, and there are lots of other countries without one too, some considerably bigger. There's plenty of iPhones around, but I wonder if the availability of an iTunes store in more countries, would increase market penetration. And reduce jailbreaking...



    Of course, should iTunes continue to be the link to an iPhone is a different thread altogether...
  • Reply 12 of 62
    I still can't imagine this "Sept iPhone 5" scenario.



    The Apple Stores near where I live are having dead space for a few weeks already. By that I mean the iPhone 4 area, people would only go to buy MacBooks or iPads so the iPhone area is basically dead. I don't see how AAPL could afford to have a few more months like this.
  • Reply 13 of 62
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    LTE is not important outside the US



    No, but it is important here. The speed difference is huge, and I don't think Apple should wait an additional year to make an LTE phone when Android LTE phones are already starting to ship. I'm thinking iP5 will have an LTE chip in it, but if it doesn't I am going to trade in my iP4 for a Bionic.
  • Reply 14 of 62
    jeffdmjeffdm Posts: 12,951member
    It's not surprising that this might be a more incremental release with the same general look, that's happened before with 3G/3Gs. This report doesn't really tell us anything that wasn't already claimed in the past week or two.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by pmz View Post


    Can I just point out that this source, just like every other, gives me every reason to believe that they are liars who make things up.



    Why such a harsh accusation? The same exact source in the same article makes the following two statements:



    1. iPhone 5 won't go into mass production until September.

    2. iPhone 5 will be introduced (aka shown off) at WWDC in June.



    Um, hello????? Think McFly, think.



    Can anyone ever imagine a scenario where Apple announces the iPhone 5 at wwdc as expected, and then says it will be available in 4 - 6 months? It's so completely impossible that I have to believe that this source is among the most unreliable garbage I've ever heard.



    A June announcement with a September release is three to nearly four months, I don't know how you arrived at six as your upper bound. That's not completely unprecedented, the first iPad was two to three months, depending on the model, the first iPhone was announced about six months before release. What makes this different is there is already a product in the market, three months is stretching it with their previous product still on the market, at least with Apple hardware. Still announcing it in June might help them if they need to explain why they're breaking the 12 month cycle or at least to reassure buyers and stock holders that there's nothing wrong.



    That is all assuming there is any truth to this, it may all be 100% hot air and they'll release iPhone 5, 4s or whatever late June or early July like usual.
  • Reply 15 of 62
    timuscatimusca Posts: 123member
    I have a really hard time believing any of this... and I have to wonder if all analysts are just following each other's BS.



    Would they really cover iOS5 and then not mention the iPhone 5 at all? It just seems weird. If it wasn't brought up during the announcement, surely it would be brought up in the Q&A. Apple knows that not releasing the iPhone 5 at it's usual time will cause a stir - and I just don't see them skipping over it like a September release would be normal.



    And then releasing an iPhone 6 only 6 months later?



    This whole thing reeks of BS.
  • Reply 16 of 62
    lilgto64lilgto64 Posts: 1,147member
    Heavy focus on iOS and Lion at WWDC seems likely.



    I don't think think there will be any preview of the next iPhone - but I do expect that various information contained in the iOS code will hint at coming changes to the hardware.



    An iPhone 5 or iPhone 4S with dual core could well happen.



    While LTE will be important - it will not be widely available till late 2012 I think. So the question is would Apple want to be selling a product before the infrastructure is there to support it, what's that, they already have, oh, right.



    For me personally it would be nice to know in June what sort of new product is coming - I am considering an iPod touch for my son - but if a new iPhone is sufficiently better than the iPhone 4 that I have then perhaps I will upgrade early and give him the phone instead of a touch.
  • Reply 17 of 62
    tipootipoo Posts: 1,141member
    Quote:

    Regardless, Kuo said he believes the "main selling point" of the iPhone 5, due to its similar design to the iPhone 4, will be the new iOS 5 mobile operating system. Kuo expects a more dramatic hardware change to the iPhone in 2012 when the presumed sixth-generation model will arrive.



    I wonder what features the iPhone 4 will miss out on with iOS 5 then...I hope it doesn't become painfully slow like the iPhone 3G/Touch 2'nd gen running iOS4.
  • Reply 18 of 62
    pxtpxt Posts: 683member
    Absolutely perfect for me !



    I'm due for an upgrade and a proven design with slightly upgraded camera and, hopefully, antenna sorted out is exactly what I need.
  • Reply 19 of 62
    doggonedoggone Posts: 377member
    Whilst it is beginning to make sense that supply constraints will push the iP5 back by 3 months, I can't believe iP6 will be out 6-9 months later. If fierce Android competition is present then Apple would not be waiting till mid 2012 to do something about it.
  • Reply 20 of 62
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    LTE is not important outside the US



    and we are not just talking Verizon or Sprint, AT&T is trying to buy TMobile for that very reason
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