Even though it was widely expected to hit the stores in the year 2011, frenzied apple loyalists were a tad bit disappointed with this year’s unveiling of the iPhone 4S instead of the more eagerly anticipated and feature-packed iPhone 5. The iPhone 5 is already considered to be Apple’s most coveted smartphone ever; a fact that can be confirmed by the growing fan speculation that abounds over the internet regarding the impressive technical specifications of the next-generation smartphone.
While an official release date for the iPhone 5 has not been shared with the world yet, there is a lot of speculation and debate among fans and die-hard Apple loyalists regarding the possible date that Apple might consider ideal to unveil the smartphone. However, there does seems to be a general consensus among fans and speculators alike that the iPhone 5 will, in fact, be released in the current year instead of, say, next year. Here are some of the speculated release dates that Apple fans have discussed over the internet:
March 2012
Seeing the unmistakable release pattern that Apple has traditionally followed with its iPhone product line, it was only fitting for a majority of Apple loyalists to speculate that the latest installation to the series, the iPhone 5, would be unveiled in March 2012. This also seemed reasonable, seeing how iPhone 4S’s release in October 2011 would provide it with six months of uninterrupted sales. However, much to the chagrin of Apple fans, Apple made no such announcements, possibly since a release date in spring would reduce the potential sales buffer between the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5.
June 2012
Sprint has recently announced its plans to launch its 4G network, along with a range of supporting devices, in June; a move that, many fans believe, strongly suggests that the 4G-suppported iPhone 5 could hit the stands in mid-2012. This has caused many eager fans to believe that the iPhone 5 will, in all possibility, be released as early as this upcoming June, particularly since the high-tech feature-packed smartphone supports the technology. In all likelihood, many people anticipate iPhone 5’s release date to be announced at the upcoming WWDC 2012.
October 5th, 2012
Seeing how Apple has traditionally ensured at least a year between its iPhone iteration, there is all the likelihood that the iPhone 5 will be released in October 2012; exactly a year after the release of its predecessor, the iPhone 4S. This seems entirely reasonable, seeing how a deliberately delayed release date would increase the sales buffer between iPhone 4S and iPhone 5. Some online resources also cite certain well-placed sources within the supply-chain management to have actually confirmed the release date to be in October, largely due to an unprecedented shortage in LTE chips.
Another factor that could possibly push the release date of the iPhone 5 even beyond October is Qualcomm’s difficulty in meeting an unprecedented increase in demand which could possibly result in a delay in shipment to Apple of essential hardware. This may eventually force enthusiastic and eager loyalists of the iPhone product line to wait even longer than expected.
