KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Monday that the Apple iPhone 8 won't launch until October or November, blaming "significant hardware upgrades."
His report echoes those from other Apple trackers. A rumor from Apple's supply chain earlier this month said the iPhone 8, expected to be the most premium of three new iPhones set to launch this year, was delayed by two months.
Shortly after, Drexel Hamilton analyst Brian White said the same, arguing that Apple's 5.8-inch iPhone 8 "will be delayed by several weeks due to challenges around the 3-D sensing technology but still in time for the December holidays." Last week, Bloomberg reported that supply constraints would delay the launch.
Kuo's report, like the others, suggests that Apple will launch an iPhone 7s and an iPhone 7s Plus in September, when it usually upgrades its iPhones, but that the most high-end version of the device won't launch until a month or two later.
The delayed release may hurt sales, Kuo said, according to Apple blog 9to5Mac, since some customers will want to wait for the iPhone 8 instead of the iPhone 7s or iPhone 7s Plus.
The iPhone 8 is expected to employ a curved OLED display from Samsung in addition to other new features, like the 3-D camera and possibly a fingerprint reader that's embedded in the display. Like the other reports, Kuo cited these upgrades for the delay.
Apple's most dedicated fans may want to hold out for the best iPhone it ever makes, but the bulk of consumers may be just as interested in buying the smaller advancements in the less-expensive iPhone7 upgrades.