'Apple Watch 2' Release Date & Price: Smartwatch Out in the Fall, Production starts Mid-2016 [Specs & Feature Rumor Round Up]

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Fans of the Apple Watch will have to wait for a little longer because contrary to earlier reports that the highly anticipated device will be released this spring, the company behind it has decided to begin production mid-2016 for a fall release, Fool.com reports.

In addition, manufacturing of the Apple Watch 2 will be courtesy of Quanta, which will serve as the sole manufacturer of the second generation device. Mac Rumors reports that Quanta will roll out the production process come second quarter of this year, as they are currently conducting a trial production of the smartwatch this month.

Apple is reportedly downsizing on the number of Apple Watch 2 to be produced due to the underwhelming response of the market to the first Apple Watch. A statement from Mac Rumors reads:

Apple originally considered shifting some second-generation Apple Watch orders to Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry), but decided to keep all the orders with Quanta as volumes will not be high, the sources noted. Because of Apple Watch's weaker than expected shipments, Apple recently reduced the device's shipment forecast for 2016 down further from its estimate in the fourth quarter of 2015.

While no figure has been released yet, it is most likely that the estimated number of pieces to be produced will rival those of similar products such as the Fitbit.

Meanwhile, Techno Buffalo is reporting that the new Apple Watch 2 may feature a built-in camera for FaceTime calls, a Wi-Fi chip for connectivity, and improved health and fitness sensors. It may also be powered by a new chip such as TSMC's 16FFCC technology, which is believed to be a compact, cheaper version of the higher performance 16FF+ technology which can be found on some of the Apple A9 and all of A9X chips. TSMC has reportedly been marketing the 16FFCC as the chip for wearable devices, so it wouldn't be impossible for the Apple Watch 2 to be powered by this new chip.

On the aesthetic front, MacWorld UK reports that the Apple Watch 2 may be featuring more variations than its predecessor's Sports, Steel, and Edition tiers, which also means that in terms of price point, the new Apple Watch will be somewhere between the most expensive steel Apple Watch and its least expensive counterpart. Rumors have it that materials such as tungsten, palladium, titanium or even platinum will be used in the bands of the new Apple Watch.

Meanwhile, Apple Watch is also looking to delve deeper into the health aspect of the user's lifestyle and as per Tim Cook, he's determined to create a product for use in medicine.

"We don’t want to put the watch through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) process. I wouldn’t mind putting something adjacent to the watch through it, but not the watch, because it would hold us back from innovating too much, the cycles are too long," Cook told The Telegraph. "But you can begin to envision other things that might be adjacent to it—maybe an app, maybe something else."

Whether or not the Apple Watch successor can emerge to be a major player against FitBit and other wearable devices is yet to be seen when it gets released this fall.