The new Apple iPhone 5 now has a release date of Sept. 21, 2012.

iMore said that sources told them the new iPhone will debut at a special event on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012, and will release the next Friday on the 21st. "This information comes from sources who have proven accurate in the past," the website said.

The iPad mini will announce at the same September 12 event, as well as the new iPad nano.

iMore reports:

"Unlike last year, when some 16 months separated the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, a September 21 schedule would put the iPhone 5 launch at just over 11 months after the iPhone 4S.

"The longer schedule last year allowed Apple to re-position the iPhone as the new, big fall product release. It took the spotlight from the iPod family that previously ruled the holiday quarter, but has waned in recent years. It also padded the time between the Verizon iPhone 4 launch, which only occurred in February of 2011, and gave four extra months for Apple to work on iOS 5, which included major new features like iCloud, Notification Center, iMessage, and Siri."

iOS 6, which was announced June 11 and includes a new, Google-free Maps app, and Passbook, should get a final presentation during the September 12 event, iMore reported. A release should be around Wednesday, September 19, if Apple sticks to similar previous patterns.

New reports also suggest that Apple is getting the iPhone 5 ready for release.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple has ordered key components for a new iPhone it is aiming to launch by the end of September, said people familiar with the situation.

The people said the new iPhone is expected to be similar to the current iPhone 4, but thinner and lighter with an improved eight-megapixel camera.

One person familiar with the matter said the new iPhone will operate on Qualcomm Inc.'s wireless chips. Apple's current iPhone 4 uses chips from a former unit of German chip maker Infineon Technologies AG that is now owned by Intel Corp. in the model available to most operators. It uses Qualcomm chips for a version for U.S. carrier Verizon Wireless.

WSJ reported that two people familiar with the situation cautioned the next iPhone could be delayed further if contract manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., which assembles the iPhone for Apple, couldn't improve its production yield rate.

"The touch-screen devices are so thin. It's really difficult to install so many components into the iPhones and iPads," Gou said. "We hope to raise the yield rate and volume in the second half, which will help improve our gross margin."

Reports say that the new iPhone 5 will have a bigger display, be thinner and lighter than the iPhone 4S, and will be able to run on 4G LTE technology. It was also said that it will feature a 19-pin mini connector and it will be equipped with a new technology called in-cell. This new in-cell technology integrates touch sensors into the LCD, making it unnecessary to have a separate touch-screen layer. This creates a thinner screen and improves the quality of displayed images. It will also feature tiny SIM cards called nano-SIMS.