Imagine Apple NOT Announcing An iPhone 5 Next Week

On this next-to-last Monday before Apple is expected to unveil an iPhone 5, we’ve got an interesting question worth asking. What happens, if Apple, in fact, doesn’t announce an iPhone 5 next week? In other words, what if Apple’s big reveal is nothing more than an updated iPhone 4 with a slightly different title? For many months now, we’ve heard countless rumors that Apple will release its next-generation iPhone with the iPhone 5 moniker. This handset, we’ve heard, will be radically different than the current model, both in its design and what it offers for customers on the inside. However, what if the next great iPhone design isn’t happening until 2012 and because of this, Apple plans on skipping the name iPhone 5 altogether? According to TiPb, this could actually happen:

So let’s pretend for a moment that there’s no big new redesign this year and that means Apple doesn’t want to go with iPhone 5 as the name, and iPhone 4S just doesn’t do it for carriers who, now touting HPSA+ as 4G are eager to slap that faux-logo on every box they can. AT&T and others would almost certainly want to market an HSPA+ iPhone as 4G, the way they do their other HSPA+ phones, so having 4G or 4GS in the name would be perfect for them. Of course, Verizon (and potentially Sprint) don’t have HSPA+ networks, and the new iPhone likely won’t support LTE 4G until next year. That would leave Verizon at a significant marketing disadvantage. Would Apple be willing to do that to Verizon? Either before or after Verizon took Samsung’s side in the ongoing Apple vs. Samsung patent dispute?

Keep in mind, Apple’s iPhone numbering system isn’t set in stone and has been altered over time.  For example, the iPhone 3G was the second iPhone, with the “3G” added because the handset was the first to run on AT&T’s 3G network. In other words, it wasn’t called the iPhone 2, even though it was the second model. Then, in 2009, Apple released the iPhone 3GS. In this case, the name took on two meanings. First, it (again) signified the handset ran on a 3G network. However, because it was the third-generation iPhone, Apple kept the “3” in its name. Finally, in 2010, Apple released its fourth-generation iPhone and called it simply the iPhone 4. This current model deserved a new number because 1) it was the fourth iPhone and 2) it was radically different than the first three models in terms of design. So, let’s assume for the moment Apple isn’t planning a radically new handset for 2011. In this case, does the company call it the iPhone 5 or something else, perhaps the iPhone 4GS. After all, there is nothing wrong with the iPhone 4’s design, so why change it now? Under this scenario, the iPhone 4GS would be followed by the iPhone 6 in 2012, meaning there would never be an iPhone 5. We’re not suggesting skipping the iPhone 5 is going to happen. If fact, we still believe Apple will release it and a lower-priced iPhone 4 (the iPhone 4S) next week. Still, who knows? After all, it wouldn't be the first time Apple skips an iPhone title.

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