The Fifth Generation iPhone Rumor Roundup
January 22, 2011
Even though iPhone 4 news continues to spread around the Internet these days, there is already plenty of speculation on the next revision of Apple's smartphone. While the New York Times has decided to highlight an iPhone 5 overview piece by ReadWriteWeb, I'll too be throwing my own guesses on the table.
Of course, rumors begin for the next revision of a product as soon as the latest one officially launches. Though, first rumors are mostly based off of the wish list items that didn't get delivered. Anyway, I'll be taking care of ReadWriteWeb's mentions, then my own. As always, these could be accurate or completely off-base, but here is the buzz anyway.
ReadWriteWeb: NFC, Improved Search And Voice Commands, Facial Recognition, And iTunes 'cloud'
The first item Sarah Perez of ReadWriteWeb ties to the release of the next iPhone is near field communication technology. This topic began after Apple hired an NFC expert last year. NFC is a very short range communication system, primarily being tested on mobile phones for commerce purposes: ticketing, identification, payments, and electronic key cards. Over a dozen mobile handsets and the latest version of Android already support NFC.
Sarah's next few topics are also a revisiting of speculation surrounding some previous acquisitions by Apple. Early last year, Apple quickly snatched up Siri, the developer of an intelligent search assistant app for iPhone and iPod touch. Apple's purchase of facial recognition software developer Polar Rose and patents could suggest some new security feature or iPhoto-like tagging in the iOS Photos app. And, of course, ReadWriteWeb couldn't go without dragging the Lala Media becomes iTunes 'cloud' dreams back into the spotlight.
That is it for ReadWriteWeb’s next generation iPhone speculation, for now. Personally, I only see NFC and Siri-based search features being any kind of a real possibility. Anyway, it's time to move onto some upgrade rumors about the second generation iPad that are related to the iPhone.
Internal Upgrades: CPU, GPU, Wireless, And Camera
Physical design changes? This doesn't seem very likely. Well, maybe, a slightly modified antenna, but even that shouldn't be considered a "given." The biggest possible aesthetic change could finally be different color offerings, hint, hint, the longstanding white iPhone fiasco.
Since the iPhone 4 contains basically the same internals as the iPad already, I don't see why the 5G iPhone couldn't be the same as the 2G iPad. Engadget has a lengthy piece on Apple transitioning from Infineon to Qualcomm wireless communication chipsets to accommodate both CDMA and GSM needs, and moving up from Apple's current 1GHz single-core A4 microprocessor to a new multi-core A5.
Apple's A4 is based from ARM's Cortex-A8, whereas the rumored Apple A5 will be built around the "2GHz typical operation" and "scalable up to four coherent cores" ARM Cortex-A9.
Speaking of performance enhancements, Mac Rumors found a new driver bundle in the iOS 4.3 Beta 1 release, hinting that Apple could soon be upgrading the iDevice GPU from the POWERVR SGX535 to the OpenCL-capable POWERVR SGX543.
The one topic I haven't heard anyone stirring about is the iPhone's camera. Granted, the current 5 megapixel and 720p video capable unit in the iPhone 4 isn't anything to scoff at. Likely depending on whether the current camera is capable of 1080p video recording, I wouldn't see it impossible for Apple to bump the rear camera to a model capable of specifications like 8 MP and 1080p.
Pricing And Availability
Outside of reminding readers of the hints of a spring white iPhone 4 availability, I don't plan on getting into that train wreck of a discussion. Pricing? That hasn't changed much over the years, nor do I suspect it to during this next round. As far as the 5G iPhone release; that's a toughie. With the CDMA iPhone 4 arriving next month and a possible white iPhone 4 launch -- or re-launch --, I can't say I'm not a bit skeptical on a June or July release of a completely new iPhone model. Is it Impossible? Of course not.
Yes, I do realize that all previous products are sold up until the day the new one is released, but strongly pushing a product launch, like the iPhone 4 on Verizon, and then four or five months later telling customers to purchase a 5G iPhone because of so-and-so features instead just seems like public relations suicide to me..
Future: Steve Jobs
As many have noted, including ReadWriteWeb, Steve Jobs' latest medical-related absence may be the biggest hill to overcome in the name of product 'image'. No matter what Apple has released, Steve personally announcing a product or service has made it that much more "magical" and "revolutionary" for most fans. This could mean that Tim Cook and group may very well need to find a way of having the actual product bring that extra "one more thing" excitement.
So many questions to ponder. Will the 5th generation iPhone be more of an iPhone 4S, focused on speed upgrades, or will it be an iPhone 5, with all kinds of new features? Will Apple maintain its summer release schedule? Will Tim Cook, Phil Schiller, Jonathan Ive, and company keep the "cool aid" flowing? It could be a very interesting year for Apple fans.
