The rumor mill is working at full speed around the ostensible next smartphone release by Apple in early 2016, an entry-level 4-inch iPhone dubbed by the tech press as the iPhone 6C. Here's everything that's been in the grapevine so far.

When the first report of a possible early year smartphone release by Apple hit, it seemed pretty unlikely at first blush. It seemed it would be uncharacteristic for Apple to change its iPhone development cycle, which habitually ends every September with the unveiling of new models of its flagship smartphone for that year.

But as the initial report by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo -- who has a track record of accurate Apple product predictions -- argued, the 4-inch smartphone form factor that Apple abandoned in favor of upping the screen sizes on its top iPhone releases for the past two years is still popular. And it's a market that Apple would be foolish not to (re)capitalize on. And a relatively large market, considering that a poll this month found 20 percent of iPhone users prefer a 4-inch screen.

Design

Kuo's first report also argued that the iPhone 6C, the placeholder name instantly chosen by the tech press, was actually a misnomer.

He said the new iPhone would not be related to the plastic iPhone 5C at all, but would rather include a solid metal and glass build similar to the iPhone 5S -- the last 4-inch iPhone variant released in 2013 that the new iPhone is likely designed to replace. A different possibility for the new iPhone's name could be the iPhone Mini, reports CNET.

Hardware Specs, Features

Being a relatively bare-bones iPhone, the rumored new 4-inch model for early 2016 would likely include hardware that we've seen before.

CNET guesses it would use the A8 chip from last year's iPhone 6, that year model's 8-megapixel camera, 16GB or 32GB internal storage, the fingerprint-scanning home button, plus the addition of NFC for Apple Pay. No major frills, nor much of the latest hardware from the 2015 iPhone 6s /Plus is expected. And that means 3D Touch-capable 4-inch screens are also not likely.

Price

There aren't a lot of great specific pricing details available, but given that the rumored iPhone 6C's basis for existing at all is to reengage the 4-inch entry-level iPhone market, the diminutive Apple smartphone would likely cost somewhere between the bottom-barrel iPhone 5C and the usual sticker price of a 16GB iPhone. If the iPhone 6c replaces the 2-year old "free on contract" iPhone 5S, argued CNET, you can bet the new iPhone's price will stay the same.

Unveiling / Release Date

Apple has traditionally announced and released its latest iPhones in September, and the iPhone 7 is expected to follow that course. But Kuo argued that the company was likely to unveil the iPhone 6c sooner, likely in the first half of the new year.

Another Apple analyst, Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster, later disagreed. He argued that even if the Cupertino giant was working on a 4-inch iPhone (which he doubted), it would almost certainly be released along with the iPhone 7 in September, 2016.

But since then, 9to5Mac reported that Apple was planning an unveiling event in March 2016, ostensibly to present the Apple Watch 2, since the timing coincides roughly with the Apple Watch's February 2015 debut. But the report, based on anonymous sources, also said Apple's entry-level iPhone 6c would likely debut in tandem with its latest wearable.

Could we see a new iPhone by mid-March of next year? Would the iPhone 6c follow the development cycle of the Apple Watch, rather than its larger flagship cousins? Could that device be released alongside the Apple Watch 2 in early spring?

It's looking more likely than ever before.