Apple could be planning to stop production of the iPhone 5 this autumn as it turns all of its attention to iPhone 5S and budget iPhone production.
That's the statement made by Korean news outlet ETNews, at least.
It's widely known that Apple is producing an affordable version of the iPhone from scratch, which will likely spell the end of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S as ongoing concerns. It was also presumed that Apple would keep the iPhone 5 as a mid-tier option once its upgraded successor arrived.
This would have been in keeping with the company's previous actions. Whenever a new iPhone comes along, the previous generation simply slips down the rankings, only being truly discontinued after several years on the market.
In the iPhone 5's case, the presence of the Lightning connector would mean Apple could drop its old 30-pin standard altogether in a new-look three-strong smartphone line-up.
However, this fresh report suggests that Apple will cull the iPhone 5 after only a year of production. Apparently the iPhone 5's in-cell screen technology is "not suitable for low-volume production."
In other words, the iPhone 5's fiddly screen design was fine when it was the main deal and Apple was churning out tens of millions of units, but it simply won't be cost effective to keep producing it in smaller numbers.
It's said that the iPhone 5S will employ almost identical screen tech to the iPhone 5, except for a change in the orientation of its flex cable connectors.
Next, read our iPhone 5 tips and tricks.
Via: MacRumours
