Following its invitation to the press for its US iPhone event set for September 10th, Apple has now sent out invitations to Chinese media outlets for a special event in Beijing on September 11th.
Attached to the invite (above) is the same image and tagline hinting at iPhones in various colors that Apple included on the invites for its US event. Not only will it be the first time Apple hosts such an event in China, it is also a good indication that China Mobile, the world’s largest telecom, could soon finally announce a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to its approximately 700M subscribers.
China Mobile’s chairman was quoted last month to say the company was still working out “commercial and technical issues” with Apple but that “good progress was made in preparing for the commercialization of TD-LTE.”
Following that, KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, said Apple was ramping up TDD-LTE supported iPhone models earlier than expected. If Apple offers the expected low-cost iPhone along with it’s next-gen iPhone model via China Mobile, it could mean some much larger shipment numbers in the Chinese market.
September 10th should see Apple announcing it’s next-generation flagship handset, the iPhone 5S, alongside an expected “budget” model, dubbed by most as the iPhone 5C.
Apple’s Beijing event is scheduled for September 11th, at 10:00AM CST.
The iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C have been all-but confirmed. In the case of the iPhone 5S, it’s a pretty safe bet (collaborated by well-sourced analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, iMore editor in chief Rene Ritchie, 9to5Mac reporter Mark Gurman, and MG Seigler of TechCrunch, and more) that we’ll also see a champagne or gold color option, up to 128GB of storage, significant under-the-hood upgrades (including a new custom Apple A7 chip with 64-bit processing), dual-LED Flash, a larger battery, a vastly improved camera, and more.
(UPDATE – 9/4/13) – AllThingsD Reports:
On Sept. 10, Apple will hold a special event at its Cupertino, Calif., headquarters, at which it is expected to unveil its next-generation iPhones. And a few hours later, it will hold three more events at a trio of international locations.
These satellite launches will be held in Berlin, Tokyo and Beijing, and will feature a video stream or more time-zone-friendly replay of the Cupertino event, along with some other content. They’re not an entirely new occurrence; Apple has done them before in London and Tokyo. That said, this is the first time the company has ever held a satellite launch event in China, one of its most important markets. And its scheduling will almost certainly add heft to rumors that Apple is preparing to announce China Mobile as a new carrier partner in the country.
