Apple’s expected to announce its first foray into wearables this October, but a new report out of China is adding to fanboy fears that the iWatch launch won’t take place until 2015, with claims that suppliers won’t even start delivering components until September at the earliest.
And then it’s going to take months just to assemble a few million units.
Sources at China’s Economic Daily News report that Apple’s iWatch suppliers have been notified that they should start getting ready to deliver their iWatch components to assembly locations next month, but it will take months before the final product is ready.
Assembly is scheduled to start in September but the complicated iWatch production process will take 1 to 2 months from the time a part hits the conveyor belt, to the time it rolls off the line inside a beautifully packaged iWatch. Making matters worse, suppliers will only be able to churn out 1 million iWatches per month. Far below the expectation to ship 10 million units by the end of 2014.
Because of the long assembly process and delays in production, Apple may announce the iWatch this year, but hold the launch for early 2015. It could also choose to do a limited iWatch launch in the U.S. in December, with a wider release in 2015 as more supplies are available.
The supply chain report echoes claims made by top Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo at KGI securities earlier this week. Kuo informed investors production could delay the iWatch until 2015, though with Tim Cook promising to launch new product categories in 2014, we wouldn’t be surprised if they sneak it out just in time to shush the competition.
Via: GforGames
