All signs are now pointing to a September reveal for the iPhone 5S. There’s speculation that Apple will also use the event to unveil its long-rumored cheap iPhone, but there’s not been much said about that until now.
The Wall Street Journal reports today that Apple has requested Foxconn to start shipping what it calls a “low-end” and a “high-end” iPhone in September. Foxconn reportedly began mass producing both versions of the new iPhone in June. The newspaper doesn’t go into what we can expect from the iPhone 5S and the cheaper iPhone, but other rumors were already doing a pretty job of that already.
For the iPhone 5S, you can expect a phone that looks very similar to the iPhone 5. Beyond looks, the iPhone 5S is rumored to feature a fingerprint sensor and a dual-LED flash. Apple is also expected to bump up the specs a little bit.
As for the cheap iPhone, current rumors suggest that Apple will call it the iPhone 5C. The C stands for color as the device will be the first iPhone to be offered in colors beyond the usual black and white. A leak from April gave us a look at what appears to be the iPhone 5C, including the rumored plastic shell that’s being used to cut down on the costs associated with the iPhone 5’s aluminum shell.
We’ve yet to see what kind of specs the “low-end” iPhone will be packing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple made it similar in power to last year’s iPod Touch. The point is to sell the iPhone 5C in emerging markets where devices like the iPhone 5 are way out of most consumers’ price range. Cheap Android devices and Firefox OS are making a killing with devices that cost either nothing or less than a $100 up front, and Apple will need to replicate that with the iPhone 5C for it to have any chance at making a dent in emerging markets.
We all know that the iPhone 5S is coming, but the official stance is that the iPhone 5C isn’t real. I highly doubt that, but Apple could very well be right in its insistence that it’s not making a cheaper iPhone. We’re likely to find out one way or another on September 10.