Apple may, for the first time, miss its traditional September launch for the iPhone because of supply issues. DigiTimes cites the Chinese-based Economic Daily News claims Apple is having "technical issues related to the lamination process of curved OLED panels, and the adoption of a 3D sensing system, that may cause delay of the new iPhone devices".

Instead of being launched in September, the new iPhone may have to wait until October or November until it hits the shelves.

While the report doesn't mention it specifically, we expect this is referring to the iPhone 8 that's expected to launch alongside an iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus. The iPhone 8 is thought to be a more high-end and more expensive model - around $1,000 - to celebrate 10 years of the iPhone. 

The Nikkei Asian Review recently reported that Apple had ordered 70 million OLED panels from rival Samsung, for use in the iPhone 8. It's also claimed that Samsung is prepared to produce up to 95 million panels overall for Apple, if demand for the iPhone 8 is higher than expected. The OLED panel is thought to be 5.2-inches. 

It therefore seems strange that there would be issues with Samsung's OLED panels, since it's already capable of producing them for its own Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus smartphones. DigiTimes doesn't have the most perfect track record when it comes to Apple rumours, CNBC says the same site claimed the iPhone 6 would be launched a month early, which was completely wrong. 

It is of course still possible that Apple will unveil the new iPhone 8 in September at its traditional event, but wait until October or November until it's supply chain is fully ready to meet demand.

It's still not clear if Apple will follow in the footsteps of LG and Samsung and ditch the home button from the iPhone, leaving just an all-screen front. 

With both LG and Samsung releasing what could be seen as their best phones to date, Apple really has its work cut out to produce an equally impressive smartphone, so it's no surprise that it will want to get it right, even if that means taking more time.