“A promotional photo posted to Apple’s online storefront this week shows what appears to be a new version of the plastic-backed iPhone 5c, largely unchanged save for the notable addition of a Touch ID sensor in the home button,” AppleInsider reports.
“The photo, which comes at the end of the promotional set for Apple’s recently-revamped Lightning dock, depicts a pink model with a blank home button that matches the iPhone 5s and 6,” AppleInsider reports.
“The current-generation iPhone 5c carries the old-style home button with the outline of an app icon,” AppleInsider reports.
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Oops!
4-inch iPhone lovers, here ya go (well, likely soon) – unapologetic plastic and all!
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Bill” for the heads up.]
I still miss the little square label on the home button. It almost looks a little like it’s a knock off where they forgot to put it on to me. Almost like if it didn’t have the Apple logo on the back.
I don’t know about that… The last model that had the icon on the button contained a processor (A6) that came out almost three years ago. At this point, in my circles (work, friends, family), I rarely see the button (if ever), and that usually only on 4s (people for whom 5 was too big and refused to upgrade). Most of the people around me are now on 6 or 5s. I guess people still follow the two-year upgrade cycle, even if they are on unsubsidised T-Mobile plans…
Remember, Touch ID needs a clear window to do its job.
Small point but I always found that label rather naff and quite glad it’s gone.
If they revamped the internals anyway, I hope they incorporated NFC to allow Apple Pay.
As long as the rollout later this year offers the latest tech in three sizes, then I will be very interested in the 4″ size.
IT won’t. Battery life would be unacceptable on the smaller device as there is less room for battery. As such, they will simply move the 5c to 64-bit and touchID and have it be the entry-level phone.
That is not the iPhone 5c. It is the iPhone 5sc. As usual, they will drop 5C (the lowest model) convert the next up model (iPhone 5s) to a cheaper C model, iPhone 6 will be the middle mode (iPhone 6 Plus will cease) and they’ll announce iPhone 6S and 6S Plus or maybe 7 and 7 Plus. With this image leaking so soon, I’m also now wondering if Apple will return new iPhone announcements to WWDC where they originated and release all new models right meow.
Interesting fact.
They don’t stop making any of the models. They just stop offering them for sale.
As an example. When my 64GB Silver 5, went belly up, after a battery upgrade, the Apple Store replaced it with a brand new one, dated November 2014. This was not a refurb, it was brand spanking new. This model has not been for sale since about October of 2013. They will be making the 6 Plus for another two years, just not for the same reasons they do today.
So much for the clueless “guarantee there won’t be a 4″ model because bigger is better” from idiots like MDN.
Glad to see that–apparently–Apple hasn’t given up on the 5C, which is interesting when you consider what a “failure” it supposedly was.
I think this is Apple saying that they love the plastic model… and don’t care what the media says about it.
Personally, due to its durability and general good looks, I wish the 6 came in 6 colors of polycarbonate. Unfortunately, they’d get roasted by tech media.
My point was more to the fact that most analysts proclaimed from the rafters that the iPhone 5C was a sales failure, despite the fact that it was outselling most of its competition.
Yep. I totally agree. And this is Apple’s way of saying that. Instead of just ditching it when its lifecycle is over, they’re essentially converting the 5S into plastic and running with it. Who knows, maybe we’ll see a plastic iPhone 6 in 2016.
The photo is a mistake.
The picture at Apple site shows a regular 5c, not one with touch id .
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MGRM2/iphone-lightning-dock
I personaly would like to see apple do a 3.8-4 inch in iPhone6 form factor … Not a 5cS please .
I just hope there is a black one.
… or “space grey”.