Apple iPhone 6 Likely Due Late Summer or Early Fall

Analysts at several firms have been contacting Apple’s suppliers and reading the tea leaves to come up with an expected launch time frame of late summer or early fall. One analyst, citing checks with component suppliers, is looking for a launch date in late September or early October. Another thinks September is more likely. A couple lean more toward late summer which means August.

Apple released the iPhone 5S/5C in late September last year, following on the September 2012 release of the iPhone 5 and the September 2011 release of the iPhone 4S. Prior to that most new models were announced or released in the summer. It seems like a pretty good bet that the iPhone 6 will also become available in September.

iPhone 5C maker Pegatron Corp., which reported strong fourth quarter results earlier today, is reported to be hiring new staff at one of its production facilities. One analyst says that Apple has both a 4.7-inch and a 5.5-inch model of the iPhone 6 in the works, but that only the 4.7-inch model will be released in September.

The decibel level surrounding the iPhone 6 will only rise as spring turns to summer. For now, Apple stock is up about 1.2% in Monday’s mid-afternoon trading at $538.90 in a 52-week range of $385.10 to $575.14.