Board maker tips point to iPhone estimates

Apple is queuing up a large number of new iPhones just for June alone, a new estimate may have revealed. Insiders claiming that the handsets' circuit boards will be made by Tripod and Unimicron also expect Apple to ship 3.5 million to 4 million units of the new smartphone for its June launch. The same sources estimated Apple would ship between 8.5 million to 9 million of the phones in the full summer quarter afterwards.

Both DigiTimes figures could smash Apple's previous records. While it's likely the June shipments would be staggered over multiple weeks, they would nearly guarantee outpacing the iPhone 3GS, which reached 1 million sales in three days. Apple sold 7.4 million of all iPhones last summer; the new rumor doesn't include any holdover iPhone 3GS units being sold as low-end models and may belie stronger total sales.

Strong numbers may be crucial for Apple, as toppling second-place RIM may require selling more than 10.5 million phones to outpace the BlackBerry. A rumored Verizon iPhone could inflate those sales but may not show until the fall if ultimately real.

A separate tip hints that Largan Precision and Asia Optical have had lenses certified for both a 5-megapixel rear camera and an 0.3-megapixel (VGA) front camera for the new iPhone. These corroborate earlier rumors as well as the many prototypes on view, which show a much smaller camera near the top speaker.

By Electronista Staff

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iPhone, industry, Verizon, BlackBerry, Research in Motion, mobile phones, Apple, Unimicron, Tripod