iPhone 5 to debut Oct. 4, ATD says

Apple will debut its iPhone 5 on October 4, with new Chief Executive Tim Cook leading the show, All Things Digital reported today.
The report, citing unnamed sources close to the situation, said the new iPhone itself would go on sale “within a few weeks” of the announcement.
Rumors have swirled for months about when exactly the new iPhone would arrive, with October looking increasingly likely.
The iPhone 5 carries tremendous significance for Apple. The company faces mounting pressure from the Android realm, with a confusing array of budget-minded and high-end models, but Apple chooses to put many its eggs in many fewer baskets. That’s worked out well for the iPhone 4, though, which has attained mainstream success.
The iPhone 4 has held up well under the competitive pressure. But with the breakneck pace of the smartphone market bringing higher-speed LTE networks, larger displays, NFC payments, and other features, Apple’s flagship phone is starting to look a bit long in the tooth.
The iPhone is important for many other companies besides Apple. Manufacturer Foxconn is said to be making 150,000 iPhone 5 models a day. Accessory makers, too, are champing at the bit, as exhibited by Case-Mate’s premature publication of apparent iPhone 5 cases.

Purported cases for the iPhone show a possible tapered back compared to the blockier iPhone 4 design.

(Credit: Case-Mate/BGR)

Updated at 4:36 a.m. PT to add further background and to correct the launch date in the headline..

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Stephen Shankland writes about a wide range of technology and products, but has a particular focus on browsers and digital photography. He joined CNET News in 1998 and since then also has covered Google, Yahoo, servers, supercomputing, Linux and open-source software and science.