There’s maybe a nugget of truth to be found here, albeit the source itself it sometimes sporadic.
Digitimes is claiming that Apple will release three new iPhone models this year. While many Apple watchers are expecting to see the release of two new “S” models—the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus—the new report also says the company will release a third model this year.
Where it was rumored that the iPhone “C” units would disappear after the launch of the iPhone 6, Digitizes is claiming that Apple will debut an “iPhone 6C” later this year that will sport a 4-inch display like that of the iPhone 5 and 5s.
The display panels for all three models will be sourced from Japan Display and LG Display, with the Plus and “C” screens also going into production at Sharp. The displays will be made from Corning’s Gorilla Glass, indicating that Apple may have given up on its attempts at sapphire smartphone displays for now. Based on previous reports, these displays are also believed to support Apple’s new Force Touch technology.
The larger phones are expected to ship with Apple’s Samsung-made A9 processor, but the iPhone 6C will reportedly stick with the current A8 chip. Some analysts claim that Apple will also stick with an 8 MP camera for this hardware update.
The report states that all three phones will ship with Touch ID sensors and NFC support for Apple Pay, but doesn’t mention any other possible differences. On the current-generation devices, the main differentiating factors are software changes, which allow the iPhone 6 Plus to take advantage of its larger display when in landscape mode. The only hardware difference between the two is the inclusion of optical image stabilization on the Plus.
On the software front, Apple is working on a massive stability release that will squash bugs, fix problems, and optimize performance. That will reportedly ship as iOS 9 on these new iPhones.
Only time will tell whether all this is true, so stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
2 replies on “Rumor: Apple to release three new iPhone models in 2015”
I can easily see Apple releasing an iPhone 6c featuring the internals of a 5s (including the 4″ screen) in a 5c-like plastic case to take the bottom rung in the iPhone lineup. That would mean an A7 processor, not an A8, giving each rung in the product ladder a different model of 64-bit CPU: A7 (6c), A8 (6) and A9 (6s/6s Plus).
It seems likely/possible they’ll drop the 6 Plus from the lineup when the 4.7″ 6 gets pushed down to the mid-range come September – you want a big ass phone? Buy the top-end 6s Plus – but they might keep it available I guess.
Rumor: Apple to release three new iPhone models in 2015 – O’Grady’s Power Page (blog) http://t.co/bUbtnwIvNV