Reuters Also Confirms Gold iPhone, Speculates on Potential China Popularity
Reuters has added to the long list of confirmations and claims that Apple will introduce a gold variant of iPhone with its next device - the iPhone 5S. The report cites supply chain sources in Taiwan for the information.
This follows a research note last week in which KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo stated that Apple would offer an iPhone in a gold casing in addition to the more traditional black and white. TechCrunch's MG Siegler followed up with his own claims and AllThingsD and 9to5Mac soon followed.
Gold iPhone 5S mockup. (Source: iMore)
Siegler speculated that a gold iPhone could be an effort to upsell customers in emerging markets like India and China, where gold is popular, where the low-cost iPhone 5C is expected to be a significant device. Reuters interviewed Jerry Zou, Senior VP and Partner at public relations firm FleishmanHillard in Beijing, whether a gold device would appeal to Chinese customers.
Commercially it makes sense, said Jerry Zou, Senior VP and Partner at FleishmanHillard, a public relations firm in Beijing. New colors would add "novelty and variety, both of which are key to winning over fickle Chinese consumers.
Zou went on to say that a champagne or gold color would be able to portray a luxury or high-end image that was also more restrained and subtle. Most of the customers Reuters interviewed at Apple's Xidan store, however, weren't sold on the idea of a gold iPhone, and consumers in India were "just as skeptical."
Reuters also spoke to Brandon Edwards, a Shanghai-based product designer who believes that a gold iPhone may only add cultural relevance for Apple's existing customers in the country rather than attract new ones who are using other smartphone brands.
Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 5S at an event on September 10, with a fingerprint sensor and perhaps a new 128 GB maximum storage capacity being other significant additions besides the new gold color option.
Popular Stories
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect.
There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect.
The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design.
It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information.
Relocated Charging Port
While the Magic Mouse switched from...
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things.
Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent.
A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out.
That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook.
Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Apple's upcoming "iPhone Fold" will feature a foldable screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio, according to a Chinese leaker who previously leaked the book-style device's display dimensions.
The Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station claims that Apple will adopt a "roughly" 4:3 aspect ratio on the inner display in order to achieve consistency between the outer display, as well as to ensure parity...
