Apple could release 3 new iPhones this year

Apple could be preparing to release three different iPhones in 2015, Apple Insider reports.

The story comes from Taiwanese industry site DigiTimes, which says that three phones are coming in the second half of this year: the iPhone 6S, the iPhone 6S Plus, and a smaller device currently known as the iPhone 6C.

DigiTimes has a mixed record of breaking news about Apple. Sometimes it's right, sometimes it's not!

DigiTimes says that the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will use Apple's latest A9 chips, while the smaller iPhone 6C will use the slightly older A8 chip.

None of those iPhone models sound outside the realms of possibility. The "S" designator has been used by Apple since the iPhone 4S in 2011. It uses it to indicate an upgraded version of an iPhone, often with an improved camera, but not the radical hardware refresh that requires a whole new number. (So iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 plus would now be expected in 2016.)

A cheaper, smaller version of the iPhone 6 would also make sense - and the rumoured iPhone 6C could become Apple's latest low-cost iPhone. Apple Insider points out that an analyst claimed in December that Apple was planning a return to a smaller 4-inch screen size with a budget version of the iPhone 6.