IHS' Kevin Wang has posted on Weibo claiming that the iPhone 6c will be released in mid-2016. The analyst did not provide any further details.
The prediction somewhat corroborates an earlier report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo who said:
As there is still demand for a 4-inch iPhone, we believe Apple will upgrade this product line. Because the iPhone 5s is more popular than the iPhone 5c, we think Apple is likely to launch an upgraded iPhone 5s. We predict Apple will mass-produce this new 4-inch iPhone in 1H16 with metal casings. In order to make the current iOS 9 or next-generation iOS 10 run smoothly, Apple may adopt an A9 chip for this new phone.
Kuo predicted early 2016 as the release date.
At this point it is unclear if Apple would use the same design as the iPhone 6 and 6s for the smaller 4-inch device or if it would come in more colorful options.
I am still using the iPhone 5s strictly because I prefer the size and shape. The 6 is awkward to hold in the hand due to size and shape. Cost is not an issue, have purchased both the 6 and 6s but reverted back to my 5s based on dimension and ease of use with iOS 9. A slightly thicker, smaller 6s would be fine with me. I would buy it today!
A smaller 6S would be great, iPhone 6S is still a bit large for small hands and if it would have the same performance and a bit smaller in size of a 5S it would be nice to have.
If we were to have a 6c, it would have to launch next to the 6s, but did we get a 6c? No. Will apple have anything to do with an iPhone with a 6 in the name again this year? No. With that said, a 6c won't happen. We had our chance waiting for it and didn't happen! Moving on.