Apple iPhone 6 Release Date Confirmed: 32GB Version Launching In September, Says Chinese Report

Apple Inc.'s (Nasdaq:AAPL) iPhone 6 launch date has been the subject of intense rumors for months, and a new report from China says the much-anticipated smartphone will be released on September 19, according to Chinese Web portal Tencent (via MacRumors), citing inside sources.

Last month, German mobile phone company Deutsche Telekom had a mini-controversy when it got caught leaking the same date to try to land new contracts. September 19 is the third Friday of the month, which was the launch day for the iPhone 5s/5c, 5 and 4s in previous years. The day is at the end of Apple’s fiscal year and aligns with the approach of the holiday shopping season, both of which are highly desirable time frames for the Cupertino, California company.

The Chinese report also claims the iPhone 6 will launch in 32GB and 64GB versions. What is notably absent from the report is any discussion of a 16GB iPhone 6, which has been the standard storage capacity for Apple since the iPhone 3G. The report goes so far as to price both models (in Chinese yuan, of course).

According to the report, the 32GB version will cost 5,288 yuan ($848.15) and the 64GB version will cost 6,288 yuan ($1008.54). The iPhone 5s currently sells for 5,288 yuan, which suggests that Apple may be upping the storage capacity of its bottom-tier phone.

The prices listed are for the 4.7-inch version of the iPhone 6; the 5.5-inch version is not discussed in the report. The absence of the 5.5-inch iPhone pricing and storage capacity in the report is unusual, as Bloomberg reported Monday that both models of the iPhone 6 will launch at the same time. However, earlier analyst predictions suggested the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 would be released in 2015, citing battery and display production issues.

The iPhone 6 is rumored to be rounder, thinner and have a better “ultra-retina” display, with a resolution of 960 x 1704, 416 ppi on the 4.7-inch model. It will most likely run on a 2.6GHz A8 processor, the next version of Apple’s A-line mobile processor. Apple is said to be moving away from Corning’s Gorilla Glass in favor of its own sapphire substrate, produced in a new plant in Mesa, Arizona. The iPhone 6 will run iOS 8, recently announced at WWDC, which has a crisper look and new features, similar to Apple’s health-and-fitness app "Health" or customizable keyboards.