Apple appears set to debut its next-gen iPhone at an event next Wednesday in San Francisco, California.
Unsurprisingly, pent-up demand for the iPhone 5 is expected to provide a generous boost for the company’s current quarter, with one analyst estimating that sales may hit 6-10 million the final week of September.
According to Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, the upcoming launch could see iPhone sales for the quarter exceed Wall Street expectations. Indeed, Munster believes the new handset could push total sales as high as 28 million in the September quarter.
“If Apple were to sell [only] 8 million of the new iPhone at launch, it would top the 4 million units that the iPhone 4S sold in its first three days of availability last year,” explained AppleInsider’s Neil Hughes. “Prior to that, Apple’s record launch for the iPhone 4 achieved 1.7 million units in three days.”
Although Apple has yet to officially comment on specs, reports indicate the device will boast a revamped design with a 4-inch screen and two-toned metal back.
Nevertheless, the traditional hardware home screen button will likely remain, with the forward-facing FaceTime camera centered above the earpiece. However, the headphone jack is thought to have been moved to the bottom of the device, with the next-gen handset also expected to feature a smaller 9-pin dock connector.
NFC capabilities will apparently have to wait for future iterations of the wildly popular smartphone. That being said, the iPhone 5 will likely run Cupertino’s upcoming iOS 6 OS with the new Passbook application, which serves as a digital wallet of sorts with event tickets, boarding passes and store cards.
