With the coronavirus outbreak causing chaos across the world, the usual tech launch schedules have been thrown into question – and that includes Apple's.
A new note from analyst Jeff Pu, reported by MacRumors, suggests that the iPhone SE 2 will arrive in the middle of this month, while the largest and most expensive iPhone 12 will be delayed until October.
That iPhone 12 is the 6.7-inch model, which we think will be called the iPhone 12 Pro Max and have a triple-lens plus LiDAR scanner camera on the back.
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Presuming the other iPhone 12 models are all on schedule, Apple may well announce the new upgrades in September as usual – it's just that you won't be able to go out and buy the most premium one of the bunch until October.
All in the timing
It's not unusual for Apple to have to delay the launch of one iPhone model for a month or so, even when there aren't supply problems and cargo transport issues caused by a global pandemic.
As for the iPhone SE 2, rumors of an updated, affordable iPhone have been swirling pretty much since the first iPhone SE appeared in 2016. There's still some debate over whether it'll be called the iPhone SE 2 or the iPhone 9.
It makes sense for Apple to launch this particular model earlier in the year to keep its sales ticking over. We're expecting it to have a design very similar to the current iPhone 8, which means the Home button will still be in place.
That phone might appear as early as next week, Pu says. We haven't heard much from the analyst recently, but he has been right about certain Apple predictions in the past, including the introduction of triple-lens cameras on the 2019 iPhone range.
