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iPhone 5 to debut Oct. 4, ATD says

Apple's flagship smartphone should appear 13 days from now and go on sale a few weeks after, All Things Digital says.

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
Expertise Processors, semiconductors, web browsers, quantum computing, supercomputers, AI, 3D printing, drones, computer science, physics, programming, materials science, USB, UWB, Android, digital photography, science. Credentials
  • Shankland covered the tech industry for more than 25 years and was a science writer for five years before that. He has deep expertise in microprocessors, digital photography, computer hardware and software, internet standards, web technology, and more.
Stephen Shankland
The iPhone 4 has done well, but its replacement looks imminent.
The iPhone 4 has done well, but its replacement looks imminent. Apple

Apple will debut its iPhone 5 on October 4, with new Chief Executive Tim Cook leading the show, All Things Digital reported today.

The report, citing unnamed sources close to the situation, said the new iPhone itself would go on sale "within a few weeks" of the announcement.

Rumors have swirled for months about when exactly the new iPhone would arrive, with October looking increasingly likely.

The iPhone 5 carries tremendous significance for Apple. The company faces mounting pressure from the Android realm, with a confusing array of budget-minded and high-end models, but Apple chooses to put many its eggs in many fewer baskets. That's worked out well for the iPhone 4, though, which has attained mainstream success.

The iPhone 4 has held up well under the competitive pressure. But with the breakneck pace of the smartphone market bringing higher-speed LTE networks, larger displays, NFC payments, and other features, Apple's flagship phone is starting to look a bit long in the tooth.

The iPhone is important for many other companies besides Apple. Manufacturer Foxconn is said to be making 150,000 iPhone 5 models a day. Accessory makers, too, are champing at the bit, as exhibited by Case-Mate's premature publication of apparent iPhone 5 cases.

Purported cases for the iPhone show a possible tapered back compared to the blockier iPhone 4 design.
Purported cases for the iPhone show a possible tapered back compared to the blockier iPhone 4 design. Case-Mate/BGR

Updated at 4:36 a.m. PT to add further background and to correct the launch date in the headline..