iPhone 5 - Rumor roundup!
My inbox seems to suggest that you want to know what I think the iPhone 5 will bring, and whether those thinking about buying an iPhone should wait for the new handset of go for the existing model.
OK, first off, despite what some you might think, I DON'T have a super-secret iPhone 5 prototype here, or insider access to what Apple is up to. I do keep up with all the news and I do have a variety of supply chain insiders passing on information.
Note: A word about insider information and tipsters. You will see some outlets report on every little tip or rumor that comes their way. In my experience care needs to be taken as most 'tips' turn out nonsense. Even tipsters that have shown themselves to be reliable in the past can't always be trusted.
OK, first off, what we know for sure:
- The iPhone 5 is on the way ... unless Apple has decided to draw a line under the whole product line because they aren't selling or something (yes, that's a joke).
- The iPhone 5 will come with iOS 5 on it.
That's all we know for sure. Everything else falls into the realm of guesswork, superstition, 'tips' and made up stuff. However, it is still possible to draw a line through some of the dots and come up with some meaningful 'guesses' as to what the iPhone 5 might bring.
Let's take a look at what the dots form into:
- September release Although there are no guarantees, a September release seems most likely. Have a guess at the release date in the Hardware 2.0 iPhone 5 release date prediction pool!
- No radical design change Most 'sensible' tips seem to point in the direction of the iPhone 5 looking similar to the iPhone 4. A big design shift is really unnecessary and might just give more fuel to the idea that the iPhone 4 antenna design was defective.
- Slightly larger screen It makes sense that Apple might try to make better use of the front of the iPhone 5 by making the screen a little bigger. There's certainly room for that to happen.
- Cheaper iPhone I'm hearing that Apple is putting pressure on the supply chain to reduce component costs.
- Faster A5 processor Makes sense. This upgrade would give the iPhone 5 a x2 performance boost over the iPhone 4.
- Better camera, improved flash I'm hearing rumors of an 8 megapixel camera and an improved flash.
And just to round off here's a selection of rumors that I think are nonsense:
- iPhone 5 and iPhone 4G/4GS I really don't see Apple launching two new iPhones, unless the iPhone 4G/4GS is just a GSM/CDMA unification release.
- No physical Home button A 'touch' Home button kinda makes sense, but the current button is pretty iconic. I think the next iteration will still have a hardware button.
What do you think? What would you like to see in the iPhone 5? What feature would make you switch from your current handset?