A new report from Taiwan’s Economic Daily News agrees with countless others in claiming that bigger iPhones are coming this year. According to this report, however, Apple may shock us all and the larger phablet version might not actually be part of the iPhone family.
The publication says that Apple will launch a 4.7-inch iPhone 6 (with Corning Gorilla Glass, not sapphire) at some point in the third quarter of the year, possibly a bit earlier than expected.
However, the larger 5.6-inch iOS smartphone will be an “experimental” device that won’t come with iPhone branding — a dubious claim considering the popularity of the iPhone brand. The publication does not offer an alternative name for the 5.6-inch iPhablet, and it doesn’t mention when it might launch, but says that the bigger smartphone will come with sapphire glass.
Many reports from a variety of sources have indicated that Apple is experimenting with new sizes for its iPhones, from 4.5- to 6-inches, although none of them claimed that the company may be interested in launching a new mobile brand, in addition to iPhone, iPad and iPod.
As for sapphire glass, recent reports have indicated that Apple may be ready to produce over 100 million sapphire panels for mobile devices this year, although the iWatch may be the primary beneficiary of the new display cover technology.
