Apple considering delaying iPhone 12 launch ‘by months’, claims report
Tom Sykes
Posted On 25/03/2020 
Apple is considering delaying the launch of its 5G iPhone 12 line “by months”, according to a report citing supply chain sources who say the development of engineering prototypes has been severely delayed as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, via Nikkei Asian Review.
The report says that development aside, Apple is concerned that the current situation would significantly lower consumer appetite to upgrade their phones, which could lead to a tame reception of the first 5G iPhone.
According to Nikkei, suppliers have been told to delay iPhone 12 component production by about two to three months.
We have been notified to start shipping in big volumes to meet Apple’s new product launch by the end of August, instead of like in previous years, when it would be sometime in June, said a supplier of components related to printed circuit boards. The change was made very recently, and that could imply that the mass production of the phone could also be delayed for months.
Nikkei say Apple will make their decision in May, and given the usual September launch window of the iPhone, if Apple were to delay the launch by months we could be looking at an early 2021 launch for the next-generation devices.
The report follows after Bank of America analysts also claimed the launch of the iPhone 12, as well as the rumored new low-cost “iPhone SE 2” would be delayed within a note to investors earlier this month.
iPhone 12 release could be delayed by a month, claims analysts. By @TomSykes https://t.co/WYhS6xkl3z pic.twitter.com/QAl3nr1ABG
— The Apple Post (@TheApplePost) March 8, 2020
Image: @BenGeskin
