Apple may have accidentally leaked its next-generation plastic iPhone, presumably set to launch later this year as the iPhone 6c.
The company made no official announcement regarding plans to launch a new plastic iPhone, but some intriguing images on its website nonetheless show an unannounced device that bears an uncanny resemblance to the iPhone 5S, but with the colored plastic design of the iPhone 5C and a fingerprint reader embedded into the home button.
More specifically, the images in question show the company's new iPhone lightning dock, which is designed to charge iPhone 5 and newer models. The iPhone 5S, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus all appear in these lightning dock advertisements, alongside a mysterious phone that could be the upcoming iPhone 6C.
It is clear that this colored plastic smartphone is not the iPhone 5C, because it features a Touch ID sensor. The fingerprint reader has only graced the iPhone 5S, the iPhone 6, and the iPhone 6 Plus so far, which led us to believe the device was an upcoming iPhone 6S.
Apple has replaced the image with one of the iPhone 5C in the meantime, further bolstering the idea that it may have published the previous image by accident.
As a reminder, the iPhone 5C made its debut back in 2013 alongside the iPhone 5S, aiming to serve as a more affordable alternative. The handset retained many tech specs and features from the previous iPhone 5, but packed it all in a less premium, plastic design for budget-conscious shoppers.
The iPhone 5C never saw great success to the level of its higher-end counterparts, and Apple was thought to have let go of this idea when it introduced the premium iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus last year, with no plastic version.
However, Apple may still have some plans for a plastic iPhone in the future. The purported iPhone 6C could replace both the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C. Apple would have fewer smartphones on offer, each catering to a specific segment, and all iPhones would feature Touch ID and NFC to ensure Apple Pay boosts its success.
It remains to be seen, however, whether a new iPhone 6S will indeed make its way to market this year or this image was just a Photoshop mistake that means nothing more. We'll keep you up to date as soon as more information becomes available, but take everything with a grain of salt for now.
