According to the latest report from Digitimes, their sources note the total shipments will hit 20-25 million units according to their supply chain sources in the Q3 of 2012. Not only that, they reiterate the next generation iPhone will start its production in August:

As volume production of a new version of iPhone will start in August 2012, the total shipments for the new and legacy models in the third quarter are expected to reach 20-25 million units, according to sources from the supply chain.

Moreover, the report notes shipments for existing models such as the iPhone 4S are decreasing to prepare for the next iPhone, set to make up a bulk of Q3 shipments.

Apple is set to announce their fiscal 2012 Q3 earnings next Tuesday on July 24th.

Just the other day the latest next generation iPhone rumours stated a device with 1GB of RAM, LTE, NFC and was still in an ‘engineering test phase’, while other reports have stated the next iPhone will come with a new thinner screen using in-cell technology.