Apple will reportedly start making its next-generation 5G iPhones this month

• Apple is getting ready to begin manufacturing 5G iPhones mid-September, sources told Nikkei Asian Review.
• Production will be slow at first, ramping up to mass production by October.
• This means the company is only a few weeks behind schedule, due to the disruption caused by the pandemic.

Apple is getting ready to start manufacturing 5G iPhones according to a report from Nikkei Asian Review.

Two sources familiar with the matter told Nikkei Apple will start producing 5G iPhones in mid-September. It will start gradually, ramping up to mass production around late September to early October, the sources said.

This production schedule is slower than usual — Apple usually begins production in August in time for an announcement event in September — but the delay is much less serious than the company thought it would be a few months ago, the sources told Nikkei.

Apple has not yet announced whether it will be holding its usual September unveiling event, but rumors about upcoming devices including a 5G iPhone 12 have been circulating.

Two sources also told Nikkei Apple is still likely to fall short of its 2020 production targets by 6 million to 7 million units. Apple reportedly ordered components for 80 million, but the actual figure is probably going to be closer to 73 million or 74 million.

Coronavirus-related travel restrictions were an issue this year, as the company usually stations staff out at its manufacturing hubs in China to head off any engineering problems. Nikkei reports this year samples had to be shipped out to California via Hong Kong, hidden inside giant boxes to preserve their secrecy.

Apple declined to comment when contacted by Nikkei, and was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Business Insider.