Apple could be launching the iWatch in December.
According to KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who provides rather reliable information about upcoming Apple products, the iWatch is set to be delayed because of supply side issues.
Earlier, Kuo said that the market expects Apple to ship between 5 to 10 million iWatch devices by the end of 2014.
However, Kuo anticipates issues that could push back the production timeline from September to the later half of November. As a result, Kuo has revised his earlier projection down to 3 million units for the year.
Also, Apple could face a production bottleneck due to the among the sapphire cover lenses that can be produced. This means that at least half of the finished iWatch devices could have glass instead of sapphire covers.
Kuo is not the only one who has pointed out that Apple will face production issues.
TPK, who will reportedly produce the touch module for the iWatch, have also revised their iWatch projections for the year.
The pushing back of production not only affects the quantity, but also the timing of the device’s launch.
Kuo suggests that the iWatch won’t have a wide distribution until December, and even so, because of the fewer units being produced, the smartwatch will face limited availability.
Thus far, the iWatch is rumored to come in three variants. One will have a 1.6-inch screen, while the other two will have 1.8-inch screens.
The screens are either LG displays with plastic OLED screens, or if Kuo is correct, they are made AMOLED displays by LG, and feature sapphire glass.
Apple is also testing wireless battery charging for the iWatch. The concept behind wireless charging revolves around using the electrical current from a magnetic field to generate enough voltage to power a device.
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