Apple’s marketing should make a final decision on the next iPhone’s name as the last step in pre-launch preparations. Many fans have expected the handset to be called iPhone 8, but a new report suggests the device will be marketed as iPhone X.
That’s according to a report from Dutch site iCulture (Google Translate), which learned from a reliable source who’s working for a global mobile phone operator that the upcoming 5.8-inch flagship OLED iPhone will “definitely be called iPhone X.”
This source predicted the 10.5-inch iPad Pro’s exact launch date, lending it some credibility.
The source claims that a team of higher-ups at this provider visited Apple’s Cupertino headquarters last Thursday. The managers discussed launch details and were reportedly told that 2017 iPhones would be adopting the following nomenclature:
- OLED iPhone → iPhone X (pronounced “iPhone ten”)
- iPhone 7s → iPhone 8
- iPhone 7s Plus → iPhone 8 Plus
The source added that pre-orders for the new phones will open on Friday, September 15, with the devices scheduled to land on store shelves the following Friday on September 22.
9to5Mac somewhat corroborated the report, saying that Apple will indeed skip the S-branding and go straight from iPhone 7 to iPhone 8 rather than iPhone 7s.
The site, however, claims that the OLED iPhone will be marketed as “iPhone Edition”.
9to5Mac has ostensibly learned this from case makers at IFA in Berlin, Germany.
“One case maker has updated its internal SKUs based on the info and is actively printing packaging which I was able to see in the form of preliminary artwork,” says the report. “The other had made sticker labels which they were showing to their partners behind closed doors.”
Both makers requested anonymity “for obvious reasons.”
I’m glad that Apple is potentially abandoning the S-branding for new iPhones because it’s gotten a bit boring and, in my opinion, has never clearly telegraphed the fact that S-upgrades actually get, in most cases, better hardware upgrades.
Image: iPhone 8, 7s and 7s Plus dummies courtesy of YouTube creator Danny Wingnet