Apple Confirms Delayed iPhone 12 Launch

Apple has confirmed that its highly anticipated iPhone 12 series of flagship smartphones will be delayed.

The Cupertino tech giant is expected to release a new line of flagship handsets that will be superior to the iPhone 11 series in terms of computing power, camera performance and more. The new iPhone 12 series of smartphones is said to feature a new chipset, upgraded camera setups for both low-end and higher-end models and more improvements to its overall performance.

Despite the high level of anticipation, however, Apple will not be able to release the said flagships in time for its usual September launch. Instead, it will be launching the new handsets a little later this year.

"Last year we started selling new iPhones in late September, this year we expect supply to be available a few weeks later," Apple CFO Luca Maestri said in an earnings call with investors, The Verge reported.

This is not the first time Apple was forced to delay the release of a new flagship iPhone. The iPhone X, for example, was first announced during the company's event in September 2017. Production issues, however, pushed the actual release to November of the same year.

The iPhone XR followed suit, being announced in September 2018 but only arriving in stores in October due to production issues.

Seemingly confirmed by supplier

Maestri's statement comes after chipmaker Qualcomm announced that a “flagship phone launch” has been delayed.

“We’re seeing a partial impact from the delay of a flagship phone launch. And so what we’ve seen is a slight delay that pushes some of the units out from the September quarter to the December quarter for us,” Qualcomm Chief Financial Officer Akash Palkhiwala told Reuters in an interview.

Palkhiwala did not specifically mention Apple as the customer with a delayed flagship phone launch. Analysts, however, believe that it is the Cupertino tech giant, Reuters noted.

Accurate prediction

Apple's announcement also comes after noted tipster Jon Prosser, of Frontpage Tech, tweeted a cryptic message about the iPhone 12 and the month of October.

The leaker didn't specifically say anything about the devices and the month, but his words seemed to indicate that fans shouldn't expect to see the new flagship lineup in September. Apple's confirmation bolsters Prosser's claim and accuracy at making predictions.