With September here, the iPhone 5 rumors are now coming fast and furious. While most rumors from news sites and analysts involve quoting anonymous sources in Apple’s supply chain or those who are ‘in the know’ regarding the iPhone 5, today brought an actual photo which news site Cult of Mac is claiming shows the iPhone 5′s screen being manufactured somewhere in Asia.
The photo shows workers, garbed in the dust and static-proof suits that are worn in manufacturing clean rooms, tinkering with what could possibly be iPhone display parts. Unfortunately, the photo is very unclear as to what model of iPhone the displays are for; the parts could easily be for the iPhone 4, or they could be for an iPhone knock-off like those developed by Chinese manufacturer Meizu. While Cult of Mac claims that the photo was “taken in Wintek’s touchscreen plant,” the site wasn’t able to list a source for the photo, which detracts from its credibility and believability somewhat. Currently, Wintek does manufacture displays for Apple’s iPhone 4 handset and it is likely that they are also a partner in iPhone 5 production.
Looking very closely at the photo, it’s possible that the home button is somewhat elongated, which is one of the changes rumored to be coming to the iPhone 5. However, given that the photo is such a low-resolution, this may just be an optical illusion or a perspective issue. Other than the slightly wider home button, the screens appear to be identical to those found on the iPhone 4 if not a little wider. Obviously, a lot more clarity is needed before we proclaim this photo to be an accurate shot of workers building iPhone 5 displays.
It’s somewhat unsurprising that a photo like this would come out now, as the hype is really starting to build for Apple’s next-generation iPhone handset. The iPhone 5 is rumored to be hitting the shelves in North America around the end of September or beginning of October, which places an Apple launch event in early September to get fans excited and drive up pre-sales figures. With its four previous iPhone handsets, Apple followed a yearly release cycle somewhat religiously, but broke with tradition in 2011 by not launching or even previewing an iPhone handset at the Worldwide Developer’s Conference in June.
Apple, of course, had no comment on the photo posted on 9to5Mac or on the reports that these workers were making iPhone 5 displays. The company’s policy is to refuse to confirm or deny any iPhone 5 related ‘news’, and until the official launch we will be left waiting and wondering. With this launch event likely to come in just a few short weeks, the anticipation is building for Apple’s iPhone 5, which will surely be one of the hottest selling consumer electronics devices this holiday season.