Apple is looking into the possibility of launching iPhones with bigger screens, in addition to a range of cheaper models that come in colours other than black or white.
The Cupertino, California-based firm is discussing the idea of making its screens bigger in a bid to attract consumers back to Apple from South Korean rival Samsung, sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
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Samsung's Galaxy selection includes smartphones with wider screens than Apple, while the South Korean firm has also pushed out a range of products at different price points to attract different types of consumers.
According to the sources, Apple will launch two iPhones that are bigger in size than the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S models - one with a 4.7-inch screen and the other with a 5.7-inch screen. They suggested that suppliers had already been approached, but Apple has not made a firm decision on the matter yet.
"They constantly change product specifications almost to the final moment, so you're not really sure whether this is the final prototype," a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
The move to bigger screens could enable business users to gain better visibility of documents and more functionality when using enterprise applications. It would also mean a better viewing experience if watching work-based videos or looking through PowerPoint presentations. As bring your own device (BYOD) schemes are becoming more common in the enterprise, it could give consumers greater incentive to buy a phone that can benefit them in the workplace.
At last month's AllThingsD conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook suggested that the company was open to the idea of launching different sized iPhones, if it believed that it needed to serve different audiences and needs.
Meanwhile, reports of cheaper iPhone models have long been surfacing. Last month, ETrade Supply International, an electronics parts distributor and technology solutions provider, wrote in a blog that it had heard "on the wind" confirmation that Apple would be releasing a low-cost iPhone before the end of 2013.
A few days later, Apple supplier Pegatron fuelled the rumours futher when it said it would increase its workforce in China by up to 40 per cent in the second half of 2013, suggesting that it could be working on assembling a new cheaper model of the iPhone.
Back in January, Ming-Chi Kuo, a financial analyst with KGI Securities with a track record for forecasting Apple's product plans, published what was believed to be a leaked roadmap of Apple products for the next year - the roadmap included a budget iPhone that it said would be released in autumn this year.
A source from Asia said that test production for the standard and budget iPhone models is to begin next month, with 20 million plastic iPhones to ship in the fourth quarter of 2013.
"Trial production was originally planned to start in June, but the mixing of colours is taking longer than expected as Apple has very high and idealistic standards," the source said.
