With Apple celebrating its 10th anniversary for the iPhone this year, the company is widely expected to unveil a new smartphone that brings in new features as well as a radical design upgrade. Now a report claims that Apple is going against its traditions, and is expected to start production of the iPhone 8 earlier than usual.
John Donovan and Steve Mullane from BlueFin Research Partners have told Barron’s Tech Trader Daily that there is “some indication” that Apple will start production for the iPhone 8 much ahead of schedule. “The most intriguing data points that we have uncovered suggests that AAPL is ramping the next generation iPhones earlier than historical norms, although we have no indication that there has been any change in release plans for the iPhone 8/X,” the report reads.
The report also adds that Apple could start supply chain as early as June. “Our present reads suggest a 300 percent increase in iPhone 8/X builds in the June quarter, now sitting at 9 million,” the report reads. “As a result, overall June quarter builds have increased from 45 million to 48 million, with the sharp increase in iPhone 8 offset somewhat by modest declines in legacy models.”
Do note that the information doesn’t really come from Apple but from the analysts. If true, it is not really surprising why Apple may be doing this. As Macrumors points out, the company might face production or device-related issues considering how big a change the iPhone 8 is expected to be. By moving the schedule ahead, Apple is ensuring there is enough time to iron out these issues before the launch later this year.
Speaking of radical changes, Apple is expected to make quite a few of them on this year’s iPhone. For one, there are quite a few reports claiming that at least of the variants being launched this year will be called ‘iPhone 8’. This top-end variant is expected to feature an all-glass design with stainless steel frame, and an OLED ‘wraparound’ display that will give an edge-less effect.
Other features expected are wireless charging, and some form of facial and gesture recognition courtesy of a laser sensor, and an infrared sensor placed near the front-facing camera. There are also rumors about Apple ditching the physical TouchID button, and instead embed it under the display. Other rumored features include a faster, more efficient A11 processor, a new Taptic engine, camera improvements, and 3D Touch advancements.
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