Another iPhone 15 model may have shown up ahead of its official launch day

The iPhone 14 lineup on a table in situ in an undisclosed Apple Store
The current iPhone 14 range (Image credit: Apple)

Before Apple can unveil the iPhone 15 series officially, it has to register the devices with various regulatory bodies around the world, in order to be able to put them up for sale – and that registration process means leaks can happen.

As spotted by MySmartPrice, an Apple gadget with the model number A3090 has appeared at the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in India. It's likely (though not certain) that this is an iPhone 15 model – and it's worth noting that a device with the code A3094 showed up at the same regulators last week.

For reference, the iPhone 14 model numbers at the BIS are A2649, A2881, A2884, A2883, and A2882 (that last one is the iPhone 14 for "other countries and regions), and there was a similar leak to this one around the same time last year.

The BIS listing doesn't tell us anything about the upcoming iPhone 15 range – it doesn't even mention the iPhone 15 by name – but it's another indication that the handsets are on track to be launched at a special Apple event in September.

What we think we know

Most signs and leaks are now pointing to Tuesday, September 12 as the day when we think the iPhone 15 series is going to be made official, though the day after is a possibility too. It seems probable that the Apple Watch 9 will show up at the same time too.

We've now seen a host of leaks and rumors around the four iPhone 15 devices: the iPhone 15, the iPhone 15 Plus, the iPhone 15 Pro, and the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Some of the specs look very promising – while others, we're not so sure about.

One of the biggest changes in the pipeline is the switch from a Lightning port to a USB-C port. The decision to adopt USB-C has been forced on Apple by European Union regulators to some extent, but there remains a lot of speculation about how fast charging and data transfer on these phones might be.

All the new goodies and upgrades on the iPhone 15 might come at a cost too. Earlier this week we heard that the iPhone 15 Pro would get a $100 price bump in the US (that's about £79 / AU$156) compared to the iPhone 14 Pro that preceded it.

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David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.