Coronavirus Outbreak: Apple's 5G iPhone 12 launch likely to be delayed due to global health crisis over COVID-19

With coronavirus disrupting day-to-day life across the world, Apple might postpone the launch of its iPhone 12 series. According to Japanese news portal Nikkei Asian Review, lowered demand and possible lukewarm consumer response might deter the leading tech firm from going ahead with the September 2020 launch of its first 5G iPhones. The report added that Apple has held “internal discussions” on the probability of delaying the launch by months. Supply chain sources told the website that “practical hurdles” would also be a decisive factor in postponing the launch schedule. [caption id=“attachment_7608371” align=“alignnone” width=“1024”] Earlier reports had suggested that Chinese factories of Foxconn will be able to produce the iPhone 12 as per the schedule.[/caption] For the debut of its 5G handsets, Apple would be expecting a big success. It is already lagging behind Samsung and Huawei in terms of unveiling 5G phones, and moderate reception would further dent its market share. “They need the first 5G iPhone to be a hit,” the report added. Earlier reports had suggested that Chinese factories of Foxconn will be able to produce the iPhone 12 as per the schedule. But even the launch of its prototype in March got delayed due to travel restrictions between the US and China. Now, Apple is looking at coronavirus updates in US and Europe, from where it generates more than half of its sales, to take a final call, the report said. However, if the 5G-enabled phones do get delayed, Apple’s future launch schedules will also be hugely affected. Currently, all retail shops of the company have been closed, apart from those in mainland China.