“Apple will release three different iPhones in the second half of 2015, the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus and a 4-inch device currently being referred to as iPhone 6c, according to industry sources,” Rebecca Kuo and Alex Wolfgram report for DigiTimes.
All models will use LTPS panels from Japan Display, Sharp and LG Display, clad in Corning Gorilla Glass, the duo reports.
iPhone 6s and iPhone 6 Plus will use Apple’s new A9 chips and the 4-inch iPhone 6c will be powered by the A8. All of the devices will offer NFC and Touch ID.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Seems plausible.
Related article:
How does a 4-inch iPhone 6c sound to you? – March 25, 2015
They pretty much had to do this. The 4 inch is a really good size for people who want a small, light phone that they don’t plan to use for hours surfing (ergo don’t need the large screen). There are a LOT of people like that (also people with smaller hands). I think this is a brilliant move and I hope it’s more than a rumor…
I would buy the 4 inch – having lived through the large mobile phone phase in the late 1980s (remember the Nokia brick – that needed a backpack for the battery??) Ive never liked large phones.
It’s like we’re going backwards in time. The Razor was so thin and small and it fit so nicely in my pocket…
Petey, Toby has it literally right. . . back in TIME. If you are going to buy an Apple Watch, you won’t need a full size iPhone 6 size phone, and certainly not an iPhone 6Plus size. More and more of the iPhone interaction will be on the wrist, requiring less and less a huge screen, but rather a smaller, discrete device you seldom haul out to use. We would need only a screen large enough to read and answer email, and occasionally to surf the internet. 4 inches is adequate.
Many user want/need a small phone, something in the 3.5 to 4 inch range. I wouldn’t even mind them offering a 3.5 inch phone since much of the time that is all I really want. I’d like to be able to pair the phone number with a larger iPhone so I could switch phones depending on the circumstances.
No kidding, given this option, I’d own two models for use in different situations. Price isn’t an issue.
The really small model (i.e., 3.5 inch) could come in two versions – one very stylish, gold metal — for carrying in a party purse. The other version would be for use at the construction site and would be nearly indestructible. One metal. The other polycarbonate, or whatever is tough and could be thrown around a room without breaking.
There are a lot of people that would buy and use two phones, so long as those two phones could easily share the same number by toggling a switch in SETTINGS so all incoming calls would go to the phone being used at that moment.
Even greater opportunities for the Apple Store fashion consultants. Are you thinking in terms of SIM card swapping or two phone numbers?
I’m thinking of just one number. I know that may not be allowed/permitted/technically feasible, but we really only want one phone number, otherwise the two phone option becomes unmanageable.
I know Apple could do it, but the service providers may balk at it since it would mean some reworking things at their end. Still, I don’t see why there could be each device ID could be associated with a single phone number? So long as we could go into SETTINGS and basically turn one on and have the other automatically turned off allowing the number to be used by only one device at a time, then I don’t see why there should be a problem.
And back on the size issue. I really do prefer having a mini option, i.e., 3.5 inch rather than the 4 inch. I’m refusing to move up to the iPhone 6 simply due to size, and won’t be moving up to the 6S if there is no small size version. I know it sounds silly to many, but there are some users who for whatever reason(s) simply can’t/don’t want a 4.7+ inch phone.
Go to Amazon and take a look at the Nokia Touch and Type X3-02. I don’t want the buttons or the shape, that’s not my point. My point is that a phone that size would be great if an iPhone came in something close to those dimensions and weight.
More on the dimensions and weight:
Something along the lines of the Nokia phone I mentioned above — 105mm in height, 50mm in width and roughly 8mm thick, weighting ~2.5 ounces.
The iPhone mini could be a little thicker if necessary for battery, etc. But if would also be the perfect companion for those with a new Watch for tracking when running.
Remember, “Small is Beautiful.” 🙂
You’re looking for the size of the iPhone 4/4s, my first iPhone. I liked that form and size a lot. Coupled with an ever present iPad it would be a formidable combination. If Apple brought that form factor up to the modern specs (grey, silver and gold aluminum, great camera, very great battery) and design esthetic, I could go for that.
Apple is making life very tough. When I got my iPhone 5s eighteen months ago I was thinking “I’ve got an arsenal of devices that completely serves my need and should last a while, with maybe an iPad upgrade in a year or so”. Now I have to think about Pay, Health Kit, Watch and I have a bunch of needs I never knew about before. And now there are combinations Watch + big iPhone – iPad + MacBook or small iPhone + iPad + MacBook.
Damn you, Tim Cook and your band of pirates making me surrender all my loot.
You can do that now with the magicJack app. I have the same phone number working on all 6 of my iPhones and all 8 of my iPads at the same time. 😜💥😱😃 Not kidding.
As I usually have my iPad nearby, a smaller but fully featured iPhone would be perfect for me – especially as I prefer to carry my iPhone in my shirt pocket.
My wife would also go for that option as she also carries an iPad with her, but has now abandoned her iPhone for a small Nokia dumb phone which she only uses for texts and voice calls. The small size and multi-day battery life make it a practical companion for her iPad, but of course an equally small iPhone would be a much better companion for it.
I had a seamstress modify all my shirt breast pocket button down flaps to accommodate my 6 Plus for only $5 a shirt. She built 1.5 inch extensions to all my left breast pockets. 😃
You’ve just explained exactly why Apple needs to release a smaller form factor iPhone.
Getting custom mods to your clothes to accommodate an iPhone is completely the wrong way around. There should be an iPhone to fit standard pockets ( and standard hands too ).
Good but best would be three sizes with all the same tech. There are plenty of users who want the new iPhone but want it in the 4″ size.
So now they have to settle with 1 year old specs or go with a bigger screen, that they don’t want, to get the current specs.
But no-one knows what Apple’s plans are.
Great news! but hwy the older Chip in the C? People that love the original form factor shouldn’t be treated as second class citizens by Apple.
The 5c missed the mark for me because it didn’t come in a serious color. You can’t carry a flirty yellow phone in a business suit. IMHO, Apple would need to offer this small size with either a black plastic back or the three metal backs with the rounded styling themes of the 6/6+ phones. That could be very attractive, maybe even fashionable.
I’ve got a 5c, yellow, in a black case. It doesn’t come across as “flirty”, where the yellow shows, it comes across more like a bumble bee, if anything.
Never a comment from anyone, anywhere, at any time about any “unserious” appearance.
And except perhaps for the pink version, it’s probably the least likely to be a candidate for stealing. Works for me.
A black case would tone it down. I wasn’t hating on yellow, just the idea of no options except bright colors. I would be tempted by Bondi Blue, so maybe they just didn’t offer MY color.
Sorry people it is a DigiTimes article. That means it has a zero chance of being true.
Excuse me, what does God need with a Starship? Um, I, I mean… doesn’t Apple already offer three models in all these sizes?!
I would love a phone the size of the current iPod touch. The size is perfect for a phone. Wishing…
What!? The iPhone 5C failed! All the analysts said so!
No c!!!
Just smaller but same design as iphone6!
3.8″ ish
Hmmm, I thought MacDaily News said they were never going to go back to the 4 inch footprint. I thought nobody who used the larger size phones would ever want to go back. Now it seems plausible?
iPhone 3:6c
If it has a 4 inch screen, A9, made in with colors that matched the Apple Watch, then it would be a desirable combination of comfortable size, quality, and perkiness. A good tif for small hands.
😉