Later this year, Apple is going to announce a new iPhone lineup, but a new rumor suggests there will be one additional handset that won’t see the light of day until early next year.
According to a report on Tuesday from Business Insider, based on a research note shared by Wedbush Securities analysts Ahmad Khalil, Strecker Backe, and Daniel Ives, Apple is planning on launching a less expensive iPhone 12 model in early 2021, and it will be missing one primary new feature compared to the other handsets in the lineup: 5G connectivity. The analysts originally believed Apple would launch the 4G LTE-only iPhone 12 before the end of 2020, but now expect Apple’s focus for this year will be 5G adoption.
The analysts believe that Apple’s LTE-only iPhone 12 will be lower in price when compared to the other handsets with the faster network connectivity baked in. However, it won’t be cheap. The report suggests the early-2021 handset will probably cost around $800. But, there is some potential good news as far as price is concerned, at least for the 5G-enabled handsets.
The research note says that Apple will probably price the new iPhone 12 lineup, of which there are expected to be four new models, around the same price points as the iPhone 11 lineup from last year. The analysts believe Apple won’t raise the price points just because the new phones will have 5G connectivity.
We are expecting to see four new iPhones launch this year: one with a 5.4-inch display, a pair with 6.1-inch screens, and finally one with a 6.7-inch display. All four are said to feature OLED panels, though. The real bad news is that Apple has confirmed the new iPhone 12 lineup will see a slight delay compared to last year’s release, and the rumor mill believes the launch will be staggered in some way or another.
So, if this pans out, will you be interested in something like this? It’s a little tough, of course, considering Apple probably won’t say anything about another iPhone 12 with only LTE connectivity coming in early 2021 at any point in the near future. But would you go for an LTE-only option if it saved you a bit of cash? Let us know in the comments.