KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo told investors on Wednesday that Apple could add as many as three new casing material options in time for the holiday shopping season.
In a new research note published by KGI Securities on Wednesday, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider, Kuo said he expects at least one, but as many as three, new casings to go into production in the fourth quarter of calendar 2015. Those new models, he said, could debut as soon as this fall.
The rumor follows another report that indicated Apple had experimented with platinum cases for the Apple Watch. Platinum watches can often sell for as much as three times the price of a gold model.
Kuo did not share which casing materials he believes Apple could be planning to introduce, but did say that the new options could help boost sales near the end of the year, and going into 2016.
The analyst has a decent track record with Apple-related predictions. He correctly predicted that the Apple Watch would be available in two sizes, would boast 8GB of internal memory, and would be available in a variety of color and material options.
Kuo predicts Apple Watch shipments of between 5 million and 6 million units in the first half of 2015, with between 15 million and 20 million units shipped for all of 2015. Market consensus for the device is between 20 million and 30 million units for the year.
Kuo also expects Apple to follow their usual first-generation process, and “focus on verifying whether the user behavior and business model are right,” saying shipments could grow significantly by the second or third generation.
