Jeez, what do people expect? The iPhone 4 was cutting edge when it was released. How much can one company do one short year? How much can tech advance?
Well, what we've come to expect every June/July is:
2007 iPhone
2008 iPhone 3G
2009 iPhone 3GS
2010 iPhone 4
Along with that a new iOS.
There are a lot of things Apple could do for the next iPhone:
A5 - it's already shipping in the iPad 2 and the iPhone has the space/power requirements for it.
64GB - The chips were available last year, and could've been used in the iPhone 4.
Camera upgrade - Several camera vendors have better components that meet Apple's specs.
White - Whatever the hold up was, it seems to have been fixed with the iPad.
HDMI Mirroring - Pretty much comes with the use of the A5.
That alone is worth upgrading in my opinion. Those are all the *easy* things Apple could do. Beyond that there are new things Apple could do like NFC, bigger screen, Universal Carrier support (single model), etc...
It's really not a question of what Apple could do this year. They could do a lot. The question is the timing. While they've always done it at WWDC, this year they have iOS and Lion. If Apple isn't doing anything that involves unique developer support for new hardware features of the iPhone, then tying it into WWDC may not make sense.
I'm hoping for an SDK for the Apple TV, in which case releasing a new iPhone at the WWDC makes even less sense if that were to happen.
The problem I have with a fall release of the iPhone is that it's too close to Christmas. If you thought iLines were long now, just wait and see what happens when Apple is trying to ship new iPods and a new iPhone during the holiday season.
it's like someone is trying hard to convince people that the device isn't coming this late June like usual, makes me even more sure that Apple is spreading these rumors for the obvious reasons
I honestly don't know what to believe anymore, at this point I'm done waiting, when my contract renewal comes up in July ill upgrade to whatever iPhone is available at the time because my phone is on it's last leg. Notice how that tweeted rumor from apple exec that "iPhone would be coming in spring" died down super quick. Then there's all this hoopla about pushing the phone back. Even if something were to be released in the summer I doubt they could keep it this tight, someone always spills the beans.
Note to touch panel suppliers: Apple is using the same touch panel. Hence the reason you don't see an 'iPhone 5 roadmap'.
These rumors will be forgotten in June/July when Apple releases the new iPhone 5 with the same basic design with an A5 chipset, improved camera and other goodies along with info on iOS 5.
Now we've reached "retina" display there won't* be a better display in future iPhones. Therefore display panel manufactures are the least reliable source of data regarding new iPhone models right now.
Apple needs to have a model it can call "4G" in the US, whilst still adequately serving Europe and beyond where networks aren't established yet. Noting that Germany and Scandinavia have some LTE networks already. I suspect this geographical divergence is why we're hearing of differing launch dates, but this doesn't fit well with Apple's one size fits all ideals for product lines.
A multi-mode chipset is an answer but inevitably will require engineering compromises.
Either way a year is a long time in mobile phones so any delay in the product cycle will be detrimental to the overall platform especially give the rate Android phones are selling.
* obviously not never but in the foreseeable future
iPhone 4S in July. Same design but with coated steel and A5 chip, ships in black and White. Possible 8MP camera.
I agree. The article mentioned touch panel and screen suppliers. If Apple were making a 4S with the same basic form factor then of course the touch panel and screen suppliers would not be given a new road map. They will continue making the same thing. You have to admit it would be hard to improve on the touch panel and screen of the iPhone 4, you already can't see the pixels.
I'm hopping for end of June release as my 3GS is still running great, but I am coveting more speed and flash with the camera for indoor pics.
Comments
Jeez, what do people expect? The iPhone 4 was cutting edge when it was released. How much can one company do one short year? How much can tech advance?
Well, what we've come to expect every June/July is:
2007 iPhone
2008 iPhone 3G
2009 iPhone 3GS
2010 iPhone 4
Along with that a new iOS.
There are a lot of things Apple could do for the next iPhone:
A5 - it's already shipping in the iPad 2 and the iPhone has the space/power requirements for it.
64GB - The chips were available last year, and could've been used in the iPhone 4.
Camera upgrade - Several camera vendors have better components that meet Apple's specs.
White - Whatever the hold up was, it seems to have been fixed with the iPad.
HDMI Mirroring - Pretty much comes with the use of the A5.
That alone is worth upgrading in my opinion. Those are all the *easy* things Apple could do. Beyond that there are new things Apple could do like NFC, bigger screen, Universal Carrier support (single model), etc...
It's really not a question of what Apple could do this year. They could do a lot. The question is the timing. While they've always done it at WWDC, this year they have iOS and Lion. If Apple isn't doing anything that involves unique developer support for new hardware features of the iPhone, then tying it into WWDC may not make sense.
I'm hoping for an SDK for the Apple TV, in which case releasing a new iPhone at the WWDC makes even less sense if that were to happen.
The problem I have with a fall release of the iPhone is that it's too close to Christmas. If you thought iLines were long now, just wait and see what happens when Apple is trying to ship new iPods and a new iPhone during the holiday season.
it's like someone is trying hard to convince people that the device isn't coming this late June like usual, makes me even more sure that Apple is spreading these rumors for the obvious reasons
I honestly don't know what to believe anymore, at this point I'm done waiting, when my contract renewal comes up in July ill upgrade to whatever iPhone is available at the time because my phone is on it's last leg. Notice how that tweeted rumor from apple exec that "iPhone would be coming in spring" died down super quick. Then there's all this hoopla about pushing the phone back. Even if something were to be released in the summer I doubt they could keep it this tight, someone always spills the beans.
These rumors will be forgotten in June/July when Apple releases the new iPhone 5 with the same basic design with an A5 chipset, improved camera and other goodies along with info on iOS 5.
This year I feel we'll see a divergence in iPhone models. Whilst the Fourth Gen networks seem to be a must for marketing in the US there's no infrastructure for "4G" in the UK (2012 before the Government releases some of the bandwidth req'd).
Apple needs to have a model it can call "4G" in the US, whilst still adequately serving Europe and beyond where networks aren't established yet. Noting that Germany and Scandinavia have some LTE networks already. I suspect this geographical divergence is why we're hearing of differing launch dates, but this doesn't fit well with Apple's one size fits all ideals for product lines.
A multi-mode chipset is an answer but inevitably will require engineering compromises.
Either way a year is a long time in mobile phones so any delay in the product cycle will be detrimental to the overall platform especially give the rate Android phones are selling.
* obviously not never but in the foreseeable future
2007 iphone
2008 iphone 3g
2009 iphone 3gs
2010 iphone 4
2011 iphone 5 ???
Whatever happens I will be getting a new phone.........................................
iPhone 4S in July. Same design but with coated steel and A5 chip, ships in black and White. Possible 8MP camera.
I agree. The article mentioned touch panel and screen suppliers. If Apple were making a 4S with the same basic form factor then of course the touch panel and screen suppliers would not be given a new road map. They will continue making the same thing. You have to admit it would be hard to improve on the touch panel and screen of the iPhone 4, you already can't see the pixels.
I'm hopping for end of June release as my 3GS is still running great, but I am coveting more speed and flash with the camera for indoor pics.