iPod touch 6th generation key to iPhone 6S vs iPhone 7 release date

By Jerry Miller | February 19, 2015

Apple’s roadmap toward the iPhone 6S and iPhone 7 continues behind the scenes, even as the iPod touch 6th generation release date remains in limbo. Cupertino’s big media events for the year are finished, leaving nothing but questions for those who have been waiting for the iPod touch 6. Could it still quietly debut before the year finishes out? Is Apple skipping this generation entirely? Or is the next iTouch the key to understanding where Apple is headed with the next iPhone?

The broad assumption all along, based on Apple’s traditional way of handling its rollouts, is that the iPod touch 6th generation would see its release date alongside the iPhone 6. When that didn’t happen, enthusiasts then looked to Apple’s October event. But that was another swing and miss. Now comes the matter of why Apple took a pass again, and when that will finally change.

But now it appears the iPod touch 6th generation will arrive in between iPhone generations. The staggered launch gives Apple a few more months to further iPod touch development, which means it may offer some insight into what Apple plans to do with the next iPhone, as the two products are developed codependently.

That doesn’t tell us much if Apple is planning to release an iPhone 6S this year, as we already know what that would look like. But if Apple is indeed ready to finally let go of the “S” model and jump straight to the iPhone 7, then the iPod touch 6 will offer the first hint at what Apple is planning for it. There are several reasons why Apple may finally decide to stop releasing the same iPhone design two years in a row. It’s never been a popular move with consumers, and its competitors like Samsung gain an easy leg up in the perception department by launching new hardware designs every year.

So even as the iPod touch 6th generation may not see its release date until further into 2015, the iPhone 7 could in turn see an early release date of fall 2015 instead of the originally projected 2016.