British Carrier Says 5G iPhone Just ‘Days Away’ in Internal Video Featuring Apple’s Eddy Cue

Apple is on the cusp of launching its first 5G iPhone models, according to Marc Allera, the CEO of British Telecom’s consumer brands BT and EE.

“We are just days away from Apple’s next major launch, a 5G iPhone, which will be a huge boost for 5G,” said Allera, in an internal video presentation shared with the company’s employees today. “Teams in all parts of Consumer have been preparing all year to win this launch, and be Europe’s number one partner for Apple.”

Apple’s services chief Eddy Cue made a brief appearance during the video, praising EE for becoming the first carrier to offer smartphone plans bundled with multiple Apple services, including Apple Music, Apple Arcade, and Apple TV+.

While new iPhones are usually announced in September, multiple reports claim that Apple plans to unveil its iPhone 12 lineup in October this year. This timeframe was effectively confirmed by Apple itself, which during its June quarter earnings call indicated that supply of new iPhones would be available “a few weeks later” this year.

Four new iPhone 12 models are expected, including one 5.4-inch model, two 6.1-inch models, and one 6.7-inch model, all with OLED displays, 5G support, and a new flat-edged design. Rumors have suggested that Apple may opt for a staggered launch, with some models launching later than others, but the exact order of the rollout remains to be seen.