The iPhone 5 continues to be the phone on many people’s lips and the closer we get to a possible release the more rumors and leaks we hear. Of course everybody wants to know when the next iPhone will launch and we have more news today about iPhone 5 nano-SIM cards and the fact that European telecoms are stockpiling them, thus indicating the Apple iPhone 5 launch is nearer.

Speculation about an iPhone 5 release has been rife recently and we have always felt a fall release was most likely and not a summer release at WWDC as many had been hoping for. Recently an August 7 release date was being touted but this is from unconfirmed sources and although we can’t discount this we still feel a September/October launch is more likely. Yesterday we told how the iPhone 5 has now been reported to be at the manufacturing stage and if that is accurate then that fall timeframe would still fit. Now the news the telecoms are stockpiling nano-SIMs further reiterates a fall release.

An Apple Insider article, sourced from the Financial Times, tells how European wireless operators are placing huge orders for nano-SIMs in a bid to be ready for the iPhone 5. This would seem to be a measured risk as the sixth-generation iPhone is likely to utilize nano-SIMs but as with all new Apple products nobody can really be sure of this until Apple chooses to share that information, including the telecoms. It is claimed by the Financial Times that millions of the nano-SIM cards are being warehoused by European operators because they want to be ready for the high demand anticipated for the iPhone 5 and this is being seen to mean that an iPhone 5 appearance could indeed be coming in September or October.

Wireless operators need to be on top of this situation as the arrival of the iPhone 4 with micro-SIM caught many companies out, as they just did not have enough stocks of the necessary cards. They will want to avoid that same problem occurring again then and with the European Telecommunications Standards Institute recently endorsing the Apple chip as the fourth SIM card standard form factor it looks probable that the operators are making the right move by stockpiling plenty of the cards.

So far then all the signs are still looking promising for the fall iPhone 5 release date and among the inclusions many expect to see are a new dock connector, revamped design and larger display. In fact if Apple really pull something out of the bag the iPhone 5 could be good enough to outgun the Galaxy S3 as we discussed yesterday. Certainly there will be a lot of disappointed buyers if Apple doesn’t come up with the goods and we’d like to know what would be a deal breaker for you? What is the main thing you’re looking for in the iPhone 5 above everything else? Let us know with your comments.