iPhone 5S release date could be set for September 20th as T-Mobile has issued a vacation blackout for its employees starting 20th and ending 22nd. Apple is widely rumored to hold iPhone 5S media event on September 10th so its possible that 20th may in-fact be the release date for the new iPhone.

Apple’s carrier partners usually issue blackout dates in order to make sure that they have maximum workforce during the first week of the launch of a major product. iPhone launch day has traditionally witnessed long queues and such blackout dates have been reported in the past with other carriers as well.

This year Apple is expected to introduce two iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. While iPhone 5S will be the flagship product for 2013, iPhone 5C will be a more economical model geared towards pre-paid users and the Asian market.

iPhone 5S is widely reported to feature dual-led flash, A7 processor expected to be 31% faster, new fingerprint sensor and advanced camera software supported by new motion sensors. The overall design of the new iPhone will remain the same as the current gen phone.

On the other hand iPhone 5C will support a polycarbonate body with a 4inch retina display and will sell in multiple colors. The hardware is expected to run on A6 chip and the same 8 megapixel camera.

If previous years launch is any indication then September 20th launch of iPhone 5S in the United States could be followed by the second round of countries about two weeks later.

{via TmoNews}

Apple is rumored to announce the new iPhone 5S during a special keynote event on September 10. A number of leaks and reports in the recent past provide enough evidence to conclude that the next-gen iPhone will carry the same design as the previous iPhone.

According to a new report published by KGI’s Mingchi Kuo iPhone 5S will feature a new A7 chip. The new chip as the report suggests will be ARMv8 based application processor. This could give boost to the speed and performance to the new device which will run iOS 7 out of the box. In addition to a new processor the new hardware could use an upgraded memory from LPDDR2 to LPDDR3. Even though the RAM will likely remain the same at 1GB it will be speedier.

 Since Apple is in charge of both hardware  and OS design, it is capable of minimalizing memory capacity at an optimized state. Therefore, A7’s RAM will likely be unchanged at 1GB.

In line with recent reports published by various publications Kuo notes that the new iPhone 5S will support a sapphire home button with a fingerprint sensor. When Apple acquired Authentec it was speculated that Apple could use fingerprint sensor technology in future iOS devices. A fingerprint sensor below the home button could provide secure authentication to access the device and even eliminate the need to remember passwords as users could just tap the home button with their finger to log in or unlock the device.

Kuo’s report further suggests that the camera will largely remain unchanged in the new iPhone 5S. While the camera would be same 8 megapixel however, it could feature a larger F2.0 aperture and dual flash lights.

Another interesting prediction in the report is concerning a new color option in addition to black and white. Apple could introduce a gold color casing for the new iPhone 5S. We could also see new storage option for 128GB.

There have been mixed reports about the new gold casing and the new storage option. Apple does offer 128GB iPad so it is possible that the company could be looking at offering a high storage model to satisfy the need of pro users.

Based on these predictions does the new iPhone 5S excite you? Will you be upgrading your phone to iPhone 5S this year? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

{via 9to5Mac}

According to a new report Apple will be releasing iOS 7 beta 6 in the coming week which will reportedly be the last beta update before the gold master (GM) seed.

BGR published a report today claiming that sources familiar with Apple’s plan for iOS 7 release date believe that iOS 7 GM seed will be made available to carriers and Apple partners on September 5th. Developers will get the GM build on September 10th which is the rumored date for Apple’s iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C keynote event.

After Apple and its partners are comfortable with the gold master build, the company will release it to developers on September 10th, the day of the company’s iPhone event where we should see the new iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C make their first appearances — and they will of course be the first devices to run iOS 7 out of the box.

Public release of the iOS 7 could be a week prior to the release of the new hardware and the new iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C would sell with iOS 7 pre-installed. Even in the 5th beta of iOS 7 the software is quite stable unlike previous beta versions where the phone would crash or restart.

Most applications we use on a daily basis work just fine with iOS 7 however, developers would need to rush iOS 7 updates for their apps since some features in photography apps like sharing or exporting to camera album don’t always work.

Apple has been long rumored to be working on a low-cost iPhone to compete in the mid-priced segment of the smartphone market. There have been various reports that suggest that iPhone 5C will feature a plastic body and will come is different colors.

Now, SonnyDickson has posted a high resolution video of yellow color back housing of “iPhone 5C”. The increasing number of parts leaks and images of the purported new hardware could suggest that the low-cost iPhone is indeed in the works.

We recently highlighted a report that predicts Apple’s upcoming iPhone event will be held on September 10th. The company is expected to unveil the next-gen iPhone 5S. The new iPhone could feature fingerprint sensor, new camera, dual-led flash and a faster processor.

Apple has always offered the previous gen iPhone at a low cost with the regular carrier contracts. However, the carrier unlocked iPhones price is still quite high. New low-cost iPhone 5C would offer a great opportunity to offer the same iOS ecosystem to more customers at a lower price point even when the phone is bought without a contract.

A lower price point would expose Apple to larger adoption in Asian countries too which has become an important strategy for Apple’s future expansion plans. Apple’s popular integration of hardware and software at a low cost could boost the sales volumes and thus expose new customers to Apple’s ecosystem.

According to a new report, Apple is expected to announce iPhone 5S release date on September 10th during a special keynote event.

AllThingsD published a report about Apple holding a “Big iPhone” media event according to sources familiar with the matter. The next-gen iPhone is rumored to feature internal hardware change and would most likely retain the same design as iPhone 5.

iPhone 5S is expected to feature a finger-print sensor beneath the home button to allow easy phone unlocking experience and could possibly be used to authenticate password log-ins. Among other changes the new hardware could get a higher resolution camera with dual-flash and more RAM.

There hasn’t been much speculation about the next gen chip for the iPhone so it isn’t clear if Apple will use a new chip for the seventh-gen iPhone. Every new release the company loves to brag about speed and battery improvements so its possible that the company has quietly made some enhancements to the next-gen SoC.

Probably the bigger news for some of the customers is a cheaper iPhone widely referred to as “iPhone 5C” that could also be unveiled during the media event. According to analysts the need to compete in the mid-priced smartphone market is an important factor to grow for the Cupertino, Calif. based company. Apple’s major competitor Samsung offers smartphones is various price and size categories and continues to lead in the smartphone market share worldwide.

Apple revolutionised the smartphone category in 2007 when the first iPhone was released and since then its competitors have caught up by offering a lot of choice to customers. It would be interesting to see if Apple decides to sell a low-cost iPhone to capture market share.

{Image credit: MacRumors}

Apple is expected to announce iPhone 5S release date later this fall. A new report published earlier today suggests that one of Apple’s display partners, Sharp, will begin manufacturing iPhone 5S display panels in June.

The latest claim by Japanese newspaper Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun, confirms claims made by The Wall Street Journal last month about iPhone 5S production beginning in the second quarter. The report also mentions that Japan Display and LG Display have also received mass production orders for the LCD panels.

It’s been widely reported that Apple had been facing production issues with the fingerprint sensor in IPhone 5S, which caused delay and the release date was pushed further. Apple had faced production issues even with the white iPhone 4 which caused delay in the launch of the white color model.

Apple has pushed the iPhone release cycle from June every year to September – November timeframe. The iPhone 5S is expected to be announced at a special event later this fall. During the quarterly earnings call Apple CEO, Tim Cook, did hint at a strong product lineup which will be introduced during the fall and beyond.

According to the rumors and reports published online iPhone 5S is widely expected to carry the same design as the iPhone 5 but, will feature fingerprint sensor, upgraded camera, faster CPU performance and more.

{via MacRumors}

Earlier this year, KGI Securities analyst Ming Chi-Kuo reported on Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5S with a fingerprint sensor and the rumored lower cost iPhone. Kup specifically noted in his report that the Cupertino company would run into issues when including the fingerprint sensors, particularly with the color coatings on the sensors.

Although Kuo initially claimed a June/July timeframe, he later noted that this time would likely be pushed back to a September timeframe because of the issues. It appears that Kuo was right, with a report from Reuters on Monday noting that Apple’s suppliers are under pressure due to uncertainty about demand for the company’s products. Reuter’s report highlights all of the same issues noted by Kuo, which may create more issues for Apple, particularly in terms of stock price.

Supplier sources in Japan and Taiwan, home to dozens of Apple suppliers, said they initially expected mass-production of the next iPhone to begin in June.

That date may have begun to slip beyond June, the sources said. The phone, widely referred to as the iPhone 5S, is expected to include new features such as a fingerprint sensor. A supply chain source in Taiwan said Apple was trying to find a coating material that did not interfere with the fingerprint sensor, and this may be causing a delay.

In the report, it was also noted that a Japanese supplier has given word that “small-scale production” of screens for Apple’s lower cost iPhone will begin next month, followed by mass production in June. This likely means that the iPhone won’t be released to the public until at least September. The lower cost iPhone is expected to use the same 4 inch screen as the iPhone 5, but will have a plastic casing and will lack a fingerprint sensor. Apple has been under fire recently, with its stock in a tailspin, and increasing criticism of Tim Cook’s ability to navigate the company in the right direction.

{Via MacRumors}