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Apple's 5G iPhone 12 won't be pushed back to 2021, but future products could be delayed

By Joshua Swingle

Updated: Jul 06, 2021, 5:08 AM

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Apple's 5G iPhone 12 won't be pushed back to 2021, but future products could be delayed

There are countless rumors and reports flying around at the moment claiming Apple has delayed the iPhone 12. Some analysts believe it could be pushed back until 2021, but Bloomberg now says that won’t happen.

The iPhone 12 is still scheduled to arrive this fall

Apple’s extensive supply chain and manufacturing facilities took a massive hit earlier this quarter. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forced factories inside China to shut down for several weeks last month and only now are things returning to normal.

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The heart of Apple’s entire supply chain, Foxconn, says it has resolved the recent labor shortages and is now back at normal seasonal capacity. This bodes well for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro, which are expected to debut in the second half of 2020.

People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the 5G iPhone 12 series is still “on schedule to launch in the fall, partly because mass production isn’t slated to begin until summer.” That means a delay until 2021 is now out of the question, but it doesn’t mean there won’t be any delay at all.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro concept render

Apple typically unveils and releases its next-gen iPhones in September, but the recent travel bans have stopped executives traveling to China for the final stages of device prototyping. That, according to several people, has put the company behind schedule by around two months.

The current expectation is that Apple will release the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro in early November, a timeline it adopted with the launch of the iPhone X. That represents a delay of around 1.5 months but very much falls within the fall timeline reported by Bloomberg today.

Future products might be delayed, however

The Cupertino giant is believed to be working around the clock to ensure the iPhone 12 launch goes as smoothly as possible despite the COVID-19 impact, but it appears the company could face severe disruption when it comes to launching future products.

Apple, Foxconn, and other suppliers work closely together for months or even years sourcing components around the world for new devices. It typically uses multiple suppliers for any single component to avoid potential disruptions, but an issue as big as COVID-19 can still cause major disruptions.

The products Apple is known to be working on at the moment include third-generation AirPods (also known as AirPods Pro Lite), a smaller wireless charging mat and a revised version of AirPower, the AirTags item tracking tags, and a pair of premium Bluetooth headphones that will sit above the existing Beats lineup.

Also in the works is an AR/VR headset, but that won’t arrive until 2021 or 2022, and the first 5G iPad Pro. The latter should look a lot like the 2020 iPad Pro series that was announced earlier this month, but it will apparently boast the A14X Bionic chipset.

It’s reportedly on track to arrive alongside the iPhone 12 series and, as such, could face a similar delay that will see it launch in November rather than September as originally intended.

Don't worry, the iPhone 9 is still coming soon

The final products Apple is known to be working on at the moment are the iPhone 9 and iPhone 9 Plus. Fortunately, these are believed to be in mass production already and shouldn’t face any major delays.

In fact, Apple executives reportedly held a meeting on Thursday to discuss the iPhone 9 launch. The company was initially planning to launch this smartphone this week before delaying it until June, but is now discussing a mid-April launch.

Apple iPhone 9 CAD-based render

Another meeting is scheduled to take place this week and, if the decision is made to go ahead with the launch next month, we could see the smartphone hit online shelves by Wednesday, April 15.