The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are soon to be old news–reports are now flying in about Apple’s next-generation iPhone 6S and iPhone 7
But despite Apple's secrecy, the rumour mill and its sprawling web of analysts, leaksters and insider contacts within China's supply and production network, has become better and better at unearthing all the grisly details with startling accuracy well ahead of device launches.
So it's not much of a surpise then, that all of the rumours are lining up to predict a September launch event for Apple's next batch of iPhones. On top of this, it appears there isn't going to be any leapfrogging to an iPhone 7. No, we're getting Apple's usual habit of an incrementally updated 'S' branded model over the previous generation - in this case the iPhone 6 - meaning we're looking at the iPhone 6s being prepped for launch.
We say incremental, in the sense that it won't look massively different or offer any major new features, instead, as with previous iPhone 'S' category phones we can expect the same overall package with some fine tuning. A turbo-charged processor, better battery life, and enhanced camera capabilities usually form the baseline of what you can expect from a new iPhone 'S' device.
It started with a few whisperings from users of Chinese social network Weibo; allegedly the iPhone 6s is entering production right now. But as of July 3, a report from DigiTimes is now adding to the pile citing its usual "sources in the upply chain".
According to the report, Apple's manufacturing partners, Foxconn and Pegatron, are now receiving component shipments and gearing production for a September launch.
Force Touch, the technology currently used inside the Apple Watch’s display, is said to be one of the iPhone 6s’ BIG USPS. And while it doesn’t sound all that impressive; it’s just another way to interact with the display of your phone, there are actually plenty of reasons to be excited about the advent of Force Touch in iPhone. For instance, with a Force Touch display, you’ll be able to do things like drop pins in Apple Maps and scroll through items faster, rather than swiping. Other things could involve quickly responding to a notification, or changing volumes on a track or video.
"Initial shipments of new iPhone devices in the fourth quarter of 2015 are expected to total at least 50 million units, estimated the sources. Among these suppliers, Pegatron, Zhen Ding, Flexium and Largan have continued expanding their production facilities in order to meet increasing orders from Apple, the sources noted."
Turns out these "estimates" might have been a little off the mark, too. According to sources speaking to the WSJ, Apple is pushing for the BIGGEST order of iPhones EVER for Q4 2015. Apple wants it suppliers to build 85-90 million iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus units before the close of Q4 2015. Apple isn’t changing the display size either, keeping 4.7in and 5.5in for both models, but this is the biggest initial order Apple has ever placed with its suppliers.
And this makes sense too if one looks at just how well the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have been selling in 2014/15.
“We had an amazing quarter, with iPhone revenue up 59 percent over last year, strong sales of Mac, all-time record revenue from services, driven by the App Store, and a great start for Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The excitement for Apple Music has been incredible, and we’re looking forward to releasing iOS 9, OS X El Capitan and watchOS 2 to customers in the fall.”
“In the third quarter our year-over-year growth rate accelerated from the first half of fiscal 2015, with revenue up 33 percent and earnings per share up 45 percent,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO. “We generated very strong operating cash flow of $15 billion, and we returned over $13 billion to shareholders through our capital return program.”
The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are expected to be incremental updates, unlike the big changes we saw Apple implement last year. Still, there will be plenty of key updates to the phones and this should result in excellent sales once again. A more powerful chipset with faster LTE chip is expected to debut inside the new iPhones, alongside Apple’s Force Touch display technology and 12MP camera with 4K video capture. Apple is expected to launch and release the new iPhones during September 2015, according to the WSJ, meaning they’ll be here in just shy of two months.
The news follows on from a Bloomberg report from June, claiming production would begin in July.
Will incremental work this time around, though? It certainly has done in the past, but still there are some analyst firms that believe Apple should strike while the iron is hot – the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are selling, quite literally, like Ben & Jerry’s at Fat Camp – and push on with more innovation, more change and bigger and better features. Check out Macquarie Research’s recent note to investors, for example:
“However, looking ahead, we think that the comp issue becomes a much more significant issue in the September and December quarters. The fact is that there was significant build up demand for a larger screen heading into the iPhone 6 launch. While there are certainly many other factors impacting AAPL, this simple fact can't be overlooked. Demand for a larger screen drove much of the incredible growth in iPhone units over the past year. Since the new phone will not be a size upgrade, we are concerned that the growth simply won't be there. We are well aware that this is incredibly simplified, but because it is simple doesn't mean it won't impact the growth and stock.”
In addition to this there has been talk about Apple umming and ahhing over the name of the handset too. As the story goes, Apple feels the updates inside the next iPhone will be so significant they might warrant a full jump in numbers -- iPhone Xs updates have always been incremental. Always. Whereas the iPhone X represent big, sweeping changes to the look, feel and specs and hardware.
Having said that, we can’t really see how Apple would get away with calling this next handset the iPhone 7 when it looks identical to last year’s model -- consumers just wouldn’t buy it. For now, and despite what some have said, we believe Apple’s next iPhone will be the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. The iPhone 7, potentially alongside a new iPhone 7c range, will appear in 2016/17 and represent a bigger step forwards for the company, with a new design, new hardware and potentially a 10nm 64-bit CPU and near-DSLR-like imaging capabilities.
However, the jury is still very much out on a successor to the iPhone 5c.
Cowen and Company analyst Timothy Arcuri reckons Apple has canned the iPhone 6c. He claims that Apple wants to avoid cannibalization of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus by the cheaper device. He told Business Insider: “I think one of the reasons is because the iPhone 6 has sold so well and they said, ‘Look, why would we want to cannibalize? If we came out with an iPhone 6C, we could essentially cannibalize a price-reduced iPhone 6.’”
According to Youtube channel Unbox Therapy, which has analysed a leaked iPhone 6s back panel, the new model will be specifically altered to make it more durable. This is allegedly in response to the Bendgate fiasco which occured after the iPhone 6 launch; users found the metal chassis could bend and distort relatively easily.
The video claims that there are key design differences from the iPhone 6 shell which suggest the new model will be tougher and more resilient. Stress points prone to weakening on the older device have allegedly been reinforced or modified.
A report from The Week cites predictions from tech analysts who claim the new iPhone 6s may be "too expensive" compared to previous models. Based on leaked information detailing the next iPhone's ultra-tough aluminium alloy construction, analysts predict that the cost of production will be raised significantly. It's then thought that Apple has two options, it can either charge more for the new model, or allow the added cost to damage its profits if it does not pass them onto the consumer.
It has been suggested that Apple may go down the path of charging the extra cost to the buyer, but analysts believe that if the iPhone 6s lacks a "killer feature" this added expense won't be well-received by consumers, leading to a dip in sales. Wall Street analysts are reportedly concerned about the iPhone 6s due to the potential negative consequences of either outcome on Apple's share price.
iPhone 6s Release Date
An official from China Telecom has reportedly confirmed that the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus will be released inside China between September 18 and September 25, according to a post on social network Weibo. The official also commented on a few spec and feature details which we'll outline in the relevant sections of this article.Apple’s iPhone 6s and, we presume, iPhone 6s Plus will go on sale in the UK on September 25, according to a leaked email seen by Mobile News. According to the source, the “new iPhone” as it is referred to in the memo will go on pre-order on September 18, with a release date pegged for September 25.
"According to a leak from a major French carrier," notes Expert Reviews, "the iPhone 6S will be available for pre-order on September 11 2015. If Apple sticks to its usual schedule, it should mean that the launch event takes place on Tuesday 8 September or Wednesday 9 September. It would mean that the new phones should go on sale and be shipped for Friday 18 September."
“Vodafone has told internal staff the next Apple iPhone handset will be released on September 25,” said the report. “In an email to staff seen by Mobile News, the operator outlined pre-launch information, including that the operator will begin taking pre-orders for the device from September 18.”
The name of the handset was not revealed, however. The handset was simply referred to as “the new iPhone”, meaning it could be either the iPhone 6s or, as some reports have suggested, the iPhone 7.
Yet more carrier network leaks appear to reiterate the September 18 launch. On top of the above Vodafone leak and a US-based Best Buy leak alleging the same date, several networks in Germany have revealed the same thing. German publication Macerkopf heard from inside sources at three unnamed networks, although it's worth pointing out that most of the German market is dominated by O2, Vodafone and T-Mobile DE (Deutsche Telekom).
MacRumors noticed that KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo thinks that the next's iPhone's internal hardware and features will be improved to the point that Apple will skip the "S" model for the next iPhone and just call it the iPhone 7, reports Business Insider.
Upgrades are expected to include the “biggest camera jump ever”, according to blogger John Gruber, who describes a "weird two-lens system where the back camera uses two lenses and it somehow takes it up into DSLR quality imagery.”.
Wireless charging, or some kind of Apple-style wireless charging, is expected. Ditto for Force Touch Glass on the display. The handsets will apparently run on Apple’s new, Samsung-made A9 chipset will is shaping up to be a 14nm setup and should deliver some rather insane processing grunt, especially if combined with more RAM.
Upgrades are expected to include the “biggest camera jump ever”, according to blogger John Gruber, who describes a "weird two-lens system where the back camera uses two lenses and it somehow takes it up into DSLR quality imagery.”.
Wireless charging, or some kind of Apple-style wireless charging, is expected. Ditto for Force Touch Glass on the display. The handsets will apparently run on Apple’s new, Samsung-made A9 chipset will is shaping up to be a 14nm setup and should deliver some rather insane processing grunt, especially if combined with more RAM.
Sources close to Apple have confirmed the iPhone 6s/iPhone 7 will look pretty much identical to the iPhone 6, according to 9to5Mac’s Mark Gurman. One of the key differences Apple is apparently keen to push is the inclusion of Force Touch.
“To go with the new hardware, Apple has designed iOS 9 to be Force Touch-ready and is working to let developers integrate Force Touch into App Store apps. Force Touch on the iPhone will be used to clear up some control space across the system, and potentially replace some long press-and-hold button interactions,” noted Gurman’s report.
iPhone 6s/iPhone 7 users will be able to use Force Touch Maps to drop new pins inside Maps, inside media players for pressure-sensitive scrolling, and inside the Calendar application for adding new events, as well as across iOS 9 for quickly looking up word definitions.
This article has grown A LOT over the past few months, so for the sake of simplicity we have now broken it up into sections, see below, in order for you to find out exactly what you’re looking for without having to scroll down the article for months and months and months. Each section will be updated as new information becomes available, as it was before
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