On July 3 we posted a report titled "Production of Apple's Next-Gen iPhones set to Begin," and followed that up with another report days later titled "Pegatron Subsidiary Cranks up Hiring for iPhone that goes into Production in August." Cranked up hiring would be an understatement if the latest Wall Street Journal report is accurate.

According to a new report by the Wall Street Journal this morning, "Apple Inc. is preparing for a larger initial production run of its next iPhones, betting that even modest hardware changes will entice consumers to upgrade handsets and outstrip demand for the larger-screen phones that it released last year.

Apple is asking suppliers to manufacture between 85 million and 90 million units combined of two new iPhone models with 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch displays by Dec. 31, according to people familiar with the matter.

The screen sizes are the same as in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. By comparison, Apple last year ordered a then-record initial production run of 70 million to 80 million for its first larger-screen iPhones."

In contrast, we reported yesterday that Samsung has been slashing smartphone prices to bump up orders as they reported they'll miss their S6 smartphone order targets for the quarter.

The Korean press noted just today that Samsung really thought that their latest smartphones would be able to stop Apple's iPhone mania in its tracks, but it never happened. The report specifically stated that "It is seemed that the reason why effect of Galaxy S6 wasn't so great is because IPhone 6 was so popular that it took away all demands for other premium phones." Yes, the iPhone 6's success sucked the wind right out of the entire market.

So today's stunning news of Apple cranking up the volume isn't likely a tune that Apple's competitors want to hear – especially our favorite competitor in Korea.

About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Comments are reviewed daily from 4am to 6pm PST and sporadically over the weekend.