Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has announced it will host an event on September 9 2014 at the Flint Center of the Performing Arts in Cupertino, and the market is clearly expecting the company to launch the much-anticipated iPhone 6. The iPhone maker has made it clear that September is its favorite month for the launch of new products. Even though there are no details from Apple yet, it is expected that this could be the date that we all have been eagerly waiting for.
Before the firm introduces its flagship device, let’s take a quick look at some of the recent reports and rumors surrounding the iPhone 6.
Release date: Is it September 9?
It looks like September will be the month when iPhone fans wait will finally be put to an end. Back in 2013, the iPhone 5C and 5S were launched on the second Tuesday of September. This year the company will probably also come up with two new phones, one with a 4.7-inch screen and another with 5.5-inch display.
There is also, however, a distinct possibility that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will not launch both the phones together. According to reports, the iPhone 6 and iPhone Air Dual could both be released. A report from Economic Daily News says that the 4.7-inch is already in production, whereas the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 will go into production soon, giving more weight to the reports that only the 4.7-inch display model will be available in September.
Pricing of the iPhone 6
Sapphire glass has been consistently mentioned in reports surfacing about the iPhone 6. To date, the firm has only used sapphire glass in camera lenses, and for the protective disks that are also the touch ID home button for the iPhone 5S. Sapphire glass is stronger than Gorilla glass produced by Corning, which is currently used for iPhone screens.
The pricing of the iPhone 6 depends on the type of glass used because Sapphire is seven-times costlier than the Gorilla glass. If used, Sapphire glass will add few more bucks to the already high-end iPhone, making it tough to compete against Samsung, Google and Microsoft.
The pricing of the new gadget is not known, but it’s certainly not going to be cheap. According to analysts, the iPhone 6 will be at least $100 costlier than its predecessor. Also, features like sapphire glass and a larger screen suggest that the price will be higher
Will Apple use metal or plastic?
The latest leak for the iPhone 6 comes from China Telecom. Three images of models of the iPhone 6 are shown; iPhone 5C sequel, iPhone 6 and iPhone Air. The last one is big enough to compete with Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Apple will reportedly use more metal in the upcoming phone as indicated by patents. Whether the patent makes its way into the design of the iPhone 6 is still doubtful, but the reports suggest that Apple could still slim down the body, also, few leaked images of the phone’s case indicate that the slimmer one is already on its way.
iPhone 6 may feature NFC, digital payment system
The pics from China telecom also showed that the logo of the newest iPhone will be a cut out, probably because the company is looking forward to adding NFC into the phone for the first time. Instead of adopting the iPhone 5 design, the phone reportedly takes its shape from iPad Air. Reportedly, the power button is located on the side of the phone instead of the top. The camera is expected to project slightly more from the back as the company is adding new features.
A Near Field Communication (NFC) based payment system is expected to be integrated into the iPhone 6. According to reports, Dutch chip maker NXP semiconductors NV is supplying the NFC chips that will allow the iPhone users to pay by touch. Apple has also patented some morphing technologies that may or may not show up in the iPhone 6.
The fresh updates reveal that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is readying a digital payment system for the iPhone 6 through which the users will be able to make a secure payment with their phones. The report first came from Re/Code and a follow up report from Bloomberg indicated that the company is also in talks with Visa and MasterCard, although none of the companies has revealed anything yet. The iPhone maker has already filed a patent with details mobile systems utilizing NFC technology. Before now, iPhones had Bluetooth and Wifi for short range wireless function as well as iBeacon technology.
Other recent leaks
A Chinese repair firm has revealed a few details about the speaker for the next-gen iPhone 6 along with posting few other pictures of the iPhone 6 components. Going by the pictures, the speaker looks slightly different from the iPhone 5S. China-based whole-seller Elekworld released pictures of alleged iPhone 6 components.
A video by Feld and Volk, manufacturers of premium Apple cases and accessories, showed a 4.7-inch iPhone 6 in silver color connected to an iMac. The video also shows ‘Connect to iTunes’ screen once booted up. In the video, the iMac shows, “iTunes could not contact the iPhone software update server because you are not connected to the internet.”
Apple has already sent invitations to the media for a September 9 event. The event will reportedly focus on the iPhone 6, but not exclusively. Previously, Eddy Cue, head of iTunes and iCloud, said that the future pipeline of the company is the most promising in the last 25 years. Apple’s event comes at a time when Android is sucking up a major market share with smartphones and wearables. A new larger iPhone will likely help Apple counter the competition from Samsung as well as low-priced Asian handset makers
