Apple wasn’t the first to launch a 5G phone. But now, it offers a few models with such a capability and this drives a lot of sales. Today, Nikkei Asia said that all iPhones released next year will support 5G.
Sources familiar with the matter told Nikkei Asia that Apple will not launch any new 4G model next year. Even the low-end iPhone SE 3 will supports 5G networks.
The source added that Apple will not launch a new iPhone mini model next year. The reason is obvious – customers didn’t like this a high-end smartphone with a smaller screen.
The low-priced 5G iPhone SE 3 will hit the market as early as the first half of 2022. They added that this phone will use Apple’s own A15 processor, the same chip as the high-end iPhone that will be launched this year. The Qualcomm X60 modem will be responsible for its 5G function.
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As said, Apple is a latecomer in the 5G race. Samsung, OPPO, Xiaomi, and Huawei have all launched 5G-enabled mobile phones before 2019. But the Cupertino-based company released its first 5G iPhone in 2020 only. After corrections in the lineup, next year’s all iPhones will be 5G products.
According to four people familiar with the plan, like the previous SE models, Apple’s low-cost 5G iPhone will look like the iPhone 8. It will come with a 4.7-inch LCD display instead of the more advanced OLED display. As a reminder, Apple’s first 5G series products, iPhone 12 line, uses OLED screens.
The iPhone SE, launched in 2016, has been a sales booster for Apple due to its relatively low price. The latest version released in April 2020 starts at $399, while the iPhone 12 mini – the most affordable one in the high-end iPhone series last year – costs $699.
In contrast, sales of the iPhone 12 mini were disappointing. After the demand was lower than expected, the production orders for the first half of 2021 were reduced. The source said that compared with last year, the company has also reduced the production plan for this year’s iPhone mini models.
Next year, the iPhone mini will be replaced by the new 6.7-inch iPhone Pro Max. This means that the number of high-end iPhone models released in the second half of 2022 will remain unchanged at four: two 6.1-inch phones and two 6.7-inch phones.
Jeff Pu, a senior analyst at Haitong International Securities, told Nikkei Asia that his agency expects Apple to ship 231 million iPhones this year and 240 million next year.
