Apparently, the design of the upcoming new iPhone believed to be coming in October could be slowing up the handset’s production.
That’s according to a report from 9to5Mac, which claims that at least one assembly line for the new iPhone is being stalled because of troubles with the handset’s new design. According to PCWorld, that design is something like tear-shaped, with a rounded back, and it’s giving the machines producing the handset some troubles.
Unnamed sources cited by 9to5Mac reportedly confirmed a couple of rumors we’ve been hearing about the next iPhone: specifically, that there’s not one new iPhone in the pipe, but two. That’ll be a handset similar to the iPhone 4 (perhaps known as the iPhone 4S) and the actual iPhone 5, a redesigned model that’s a bigger technological step forward from the current handset. The launch is now believed around Oct. 7, with Apple expecting to have 10 million handsets available at launch.
Sources also told 9to5Mac the iPhone 5 will have a larger screen than the iPhone 4, and a thinner, rounder body.
This wouldn’t be the first time something about a new iPhone handset stalled up the actual phone’s manufacturing process. The finally released white iPhone 4 was set to come out just a few months after it was initially announced way back in June 2010, but all kinds of trouble with the white paint and the heat applied to the phone during manufacturing caused months of delays (it only just came out in April 2011).
AT&T accidentally lists iPhone 4S (maybe)
Speaking of the iPhone 4S and white handsets, an interesting screen grab made its way around the Internet this weekend that suggests Apple might have both on-hand in coming months.
The screenshot shows this item: “iPhone 4S white,” listed on an internal AT&T product system. The shot comes from Engadget, which received it from a tipster. If it’s the real deal, it seems to back the rumors coming out from 9to5Mac and others stating that we’d be seeing a more iPhone 4-like handset coming up this fall.
It also appears that Apple plans to have a white handset on hand at launch, which is a pretty big deal given how popular the white iPhone 4 has been. Part of the sustained demand for the iPhone 4 has been the numerous different models that have been released since its original June announcement. First there was the Verizon version of the iPhone 4 that dropped in February. Then, in April, the white iPhone reinvigorated iPhone 4 sales after a huge wait, since the alternate-color handset was announced right along with the original iPhone 4.
White is pretty popular among iPhone owners, for whatever reason, and it would make sense that Apple would want to get the white version out early to try to drag in more customers.
