Japanese news site Macotakara has released a report claiming that the iPhone 8, Apple's premium iPhone that will be unveiled alongside the iPhone 7s and 7s Plus, will almost certainly ship at a later date.

The report does not explicitly say what the cause of the delayed launch is, but just says it "has the possibility" to launch during the first half of Apple's Q1 2018, which actually runs from October to December this year. It's therefore likely the iPhone 8 will launch in late October or early November, a claim that matches up with several other rumours.

Previous rumours and reports have said the iPhone 8 will launch later than the 7s and 7s Plus because of supply issues, primarily relating to the OLED screen. Samsung is said to be providing the screen for the iPhone, but producing them on such a scale to meet Apple's usual demand is proving difficult.

The Macotakara report also says that the iPhone 8 won't come in white, a colour option that Apple has offered ever since the 3G was released in 2008. It is apparently not possible to produce the new iPhone 8 in white, suggesting it will be available in a limited number of colours.

We've previously heard a rumour from Benjamin Geskin that said the iPhone would be limited to four colour options, including a mirrored finish. However he didn't say what the other colours would be.

Macotakara has also weighed in on the Touch ID fingerprint scanner, and has said it is highly likely it will be integrated into the power button. The Touch ID scanner has been subject to more rumours than any other aspect of the new iPhone.

It was first thought to be embedded into the screen, then it moved to the rear panel, and then to the power button. Other rumours suggest it will be ditched entirely in favour of facial recognition, something that Macotakara agrees with, and Apple may call it Face ID.

As with all rumours, these should be taken with a pinch of salt for now, but Macotakara does have a pretty good track record when it comes to Apple rumours, so there may be some truth behind them.