Following reports that at least one China-based retailer had begun offering pre-sale orders for Apple’s next-generation iPhone just yesterday, 9to5Mac now reports that a number of online retailers operating in the region also appear to be offering the device up for sale.
With a list price of $8,599 – the smartphone was first spotted to be on sale by trusted news outlet Reuters, who reports TaoBao (and others) seem to be using recent mock-ups of the device to entice buyers to bite.
“Apple Inc’s next-generation iPhone has not even been released yet, but opportunistic sellers on China’s largest e-commerce platform, Taobao, are already accepting pre-orders, complete with mock-up pictures and purported technical specifications. The hotly anticipated iPhone 5 is widely expected to be released sometime between August and October this year, although Apple itself has been tight-lipped about it. Sources have said the iPhone 5 would have a bigger screen than previous models, while Taiwanese media reported the phone’s voice recognition software, Siri, would have more powerful functions.”
Today’s report follows just hours after what were claimed to be a number of engineering models surfaced for the device, showing design features which would appear to back up those which had already been reported over the past several weeks.
Apple is currently expected to launch its sixth-generation iPhone, this Fall.
3 
17 
9
