14 DAY TRIAL // Apple is expected to unveil the new iPhone 8, alongside the more subtly-improved iPhone 7s and 7s Plus, sometimes in September, but it turns out that the company hasn’t even started mass production of the three models.
A report from Digitimes reveals that production has so far been running at a super-slow pace that cannot be considered mass production, with manufacturing capacity to be increased to 100 percent in August. This means that Apple will start mass production of the new iPhone models one month later than usual, which in its turn is likely to generate a one-month delay as well.
While the iPhone 7s and the 7s Plus might indeed be ready for the September launch and the sales kickoff later the same month, not the same thing can be said about the iPhone 8.
Beginning mass production one month later than usual translates to a substantial delay in terms of start of sales, so while the iPhone 8 could indeed be presented at the September event, it won’t hit the shelves until November, the aforementioned source says.
Still trying to pick the location of the fingerprint sensor
Foxconn will be in charge of the most part of iPhone 8 production, while Pegatron will manufacture the iPhone 7s and a small part of the iPhone 8. Wistron will make the iPhone 7s Plus with a 5.5-inch screen.
As for the reasons that caused a one-month delay in mass production, it’s believed Apple tried to buy more time to decide on the position of Touch ID. Originally, the company was believed to be working on embedding Touch ID in the display, but because this technology was not ready, the company started looking into several alternatives, including giving up entirely on Touch ID or even integrating it into the power button.
A decision in this regard will be made by the end of the month, and this is one possible explanation why Apple pushed back the start of production, though we won’t know it for sure until September when the company officially unveils the new iPhone lineup.