iPhone 7c news: New phone reportedly being launched in April

iPhone 5c, Apple's most recently released 4-inch iPhone[Photo credit: Apple]

While the world waits for the debut of the iPhone 7, it looks like the iPhone 7c will beat it to the market, at least according to the latest rumors online.

The new rumors regarding the release date of the iPhone 7c actually come from China Mobile.

Recently, China Mobile unveiled their new product roadmap that also happened to showcase some phones and when they would be released. 

Included in that product roadmap is a listing for the iPhone 7c, and according to that, the new Apple phone will be out by April of next year.

What's still a mystery as of now is if the April 2016 release date of the iPhone 7c applies only to the Chinese market or if will be the same worldwide, Cult of Mac reported.

Apple has also yet to announce an official release date for the iPhone 7c, so things could still theoretically change moving forward.

Still, the product roadmap looks to be legitimate and it even has a listing for the Galaxy S7, which would be launching in March if the listing is accurate.

Previous rumors regarding the iPhone 7c had also suggested a mid-2016 release, so the new details coming courtesy of China Mobile are not out of line with those reports, according to NDTV.

Interestingly enough, the new Apple phone supposedly set to launch in April of next year was not actually known online as the iPhone 7c. Most had expected Apple to dub the new four-inch phone as the iPhone 6c when it's eventually announced, although that no longer appears to be the case.

With the iPhone 7c now rumored for an April launch, Apple might have designs on announcing the new phone alongside other devices during a major event reportedly scheduled for the same month.

More details about the iPhone 7c are expected to be made available soon.