Apple to Release Two iPhone This Fall?

A new Fortune report from Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore has released a new note that claims Apple is preparing to release not one, but two new iPhone models in September this year. The second model is anticipated to be a cheaper, unlocked model with a price-tag of $349.

In a note issued early Monday, Deutsche Bank’s Chris Whitmore is telling clients to expect both — an iPhone 5 and an iPhone 4S.

“With Nokia and RIMM struggling,” he writes, “the time is right for Apple to aggressively penetrate the mid range smart-phone market (i.e. $300-500 category) to dramatically expand its [total addressable market] and market share.”

As Whitmore sees it, an iPhone 4S that is unlocked, priced around $349, and comes with a pre-paid voice plan would “drive significantly greater penetration” into an addressable market that has grown to include 1.5 billion potential customers in 98 countries, two thirds of whom prefer pre-paid plans.

Unsubsidized, unlocked iPhone 4′s went on sale in the US only recently (for $649), so a price-point some $300 cheaper for a pared-down iPhone is a considerable move for Apple, who has always operated at the higher-end of the smartphone market. This recent Fortune report only serves to confirm rumors of an ‘iPhone nano‘, as well as the release date of the iPhone 5.