After seemingly endless speculation, some intel leaked from AT&T sources appears to confirm that the iPhone 5 will be announced officially by Apple in September, with its subsequent release in early October.
The Vice President of AT&T, who recently made the move to acquire T-Mobile to become America’s foremost telecom network, is reported to have warned senior staff members to sufficiently prepare teams in anticipation for a “really, really busy next 35-50 days” as it prepares for the release of the iPhone 5. Although not set in stone, the general consensus indicates October 7 as the launch date, with Apple taking pre-orders a week in advance, from September 30.
Unlike the last few years, which have seen the iPhone materialize at the end of Q2, the device is making a very late showing . There have been many suggestions for the reason behind this, although it’s strongly suspected that Apple could be about to move the goalposts on rivals by bringing out a cheaper unit of an iPhone to compete price-wise. Such a device would comprise of a modestly-upgraded iPhone 4, which would be cheap to produce and could be sold at a more workable $400 price range.
As for the design of the iPhone 5, as ever there have been many contributions thrown into the mixer, some more believable than others. It is almost certain that there will be a larger screen, and the home button could also undergo some augmentation. As you would expect, the device will be thinner and lighter than the current iPhone 4, and maybe finished in a similar manner to the 2nd-gen iPad.
History has a habit of repeating itself, if the upgrades are as severe this time as they were last year, then we are in for a treat. The iPhone 4 brought forth that great Retina Display, a sturdy and more polished design, and a faster and smoother iOS experience. Add to that, a 5 megapixel camera which although on paper doesn’t exactly set the world alight, has become the camera of choice for many amateur photographers.
The Cupertino company will be hoping that after an extended preparation timeframe that the launch and release goes ahead without some of the hiccups which burdened it last time around. The antennagate scandal hindered the early days of the iPhone 4, as well as the fact that Apple didn’t produce sufficient units to cope with the initial demand.
(Source BGR)
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