Apple is working on a new iPhone for release later this year, but what will it be and when will we see it? The current rumor mill is suggesting that we will not see a new iPhone this June as in the past. This appears to be true and the current consensus is that we will have to wait until at least September. I do believe this to be the case. Here are some of the reasons why I don't think there will be a new iPhone in June:
1. There has been no preview of iOS 5 and it doesn't appear there will be one until WWDC in June, suggesting a fall release.
2. Why release the white iPhone 4 now, if a new model is coming out in a couple on months?
3. Verizon customers just got the iPhone in February and maybe Verizon had some kind of no new phone for 6 months clause in the deal.
So, when will we see a new iPhone and what new features will be there? I think we are going to see a slight revision of the iPhone 4, similar to the iPhone 3GS. The phone will have the same form factor, but will be upgraded to include the new A5 chip. Other features may include a slightly larger screen, with the same 640x960 resolution, a single phone with support for both GSM and CDMA, better camera and more storage (32GB and 64GB). This new phone will be priced the same as the current models, with the current iPhone 4 with 16GB moving down to the $99 price point.
So, if the changes are so minor, then why the delay? There are a couple of possibilities. It could be a supply problem with one of the components, a contract issue with Verizon or maybe it requires iOS 5 which is taking longer than usual to get finished, with many resources working on getting Mac OSX Lion out the door. Or, it may be a combination of things. We already know the CDMA iPhone 4 uses the new Qualcomm chipset that is capable of working on both CDMA and GSM. It may be that Apple is working on an antenna design that will allow a single iPhone that works on all 4 U.S. carriers. And maybe, Verizon got a 6 month, no other U.S. carrier exclusive in the deal?
All we can do is wait and see...
