Theories abound as to what Apple is packing into its next generation smartphone and more importantly, when will it come out.
Some of these theories make sense, but some are completely off the wall.
Couple that with the viral-nature of the Internet, and a complete overload of Apple related coverage globally, it's hard to get a proper grounding of what's fact and what's fiction.
If you get a kick musing over every speculative tidbit that arises about what's next, this article isn't for you.
But if you want to get the most accurate information outside of Cupertino, IBT has wallowed though the disinformation to bring you the most accurate glimpse of what we can reasonably expect in the latest and greatest iPhone 5.
It's a bet, but a pretty safe bet.The iOS -- or the operating system that powers the iPhone -- was upgraded and polished in time for the iPhone 4 to hit the market.Just Monday Apple announced a developer conference where it said it will focus on, among other things, the iOS, lending credence to the fact Apple has something up it's sleeve for the new software.But just what will be included?Craig Berger of FBR capital said in a note to clients on February 22 that
a shipment delay would give Apple "more time to enhance its next-generation instant communications on the phone," though no more elaboration was given.Moreover, the new operating system is expected to incorporate new "cloud"-based features, things that represent "a significant step forward" for the operating system, according to Jefferies analyst Peter Misek.In line with this theory, Apple appears to building what could be the largest data center in the world in Maiden, North Carolina.The half a million square feet center, expected to go live this spring, will give Apple massive computing to accomplish five key things, according to Sanford Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi.1: A larger advertising platform, for serving up iAds
2: A digital "locker" in the "cloud" to synchronize content between users’ Apple devices
3: a music streaming service on a subscription basis;
4: an "aggressively priced video subscription service"
5: and a service that would support a “voice interface” on Apple devices, taking user requests in spoken natural language and returning answers, similar to Google’s free voice search.ReutersNear Field Communication allows devices to communicate to other devices using short waves. The reason this technology has caught fire has been its use in mobile credit card payments.It already has inroads in Japan and other Asian countries. Jupiter Research has projected that NFC Mobile Payments will exceed $30bn by 2012 (September 2009).NFC technology would allow iPhone users to swipe their phones in front of a reader, and make quick credit card payments.The NYT interviewed one person "familiar with the new feature" on March 22 who said the phone’s credit card information would be tied to information currently used on iTunes, making it simple for customers to set up the mobile payments.This echoes the hunch Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White expressed to clients on the 22nd of February:"We believe the adoption of NFC will make the smartphone an increasingly invaluable asset for consumers and we believe Apple is best positioned to take advantage of this trend in the coming years," though he didn't elaborate.
CCThe iPhone 5 will integrate a faster 1GHz dual core A5 processor chip, the same used in Apple’s iPad 2. With upgraded hardware, the iPhone 5 will be equipped with speed in processing information and apps besides obtaining lighter hardware parts to decrease the device’s weight.In addition to a new processor, new elements such as a SIM less design or an embedded SIM could help in reducing the iPhone 5's physical thickness. Among other chipsets, a Broadcom BCM4330 could be integrated for its WiFi and Bluetooth.
iSuppliFollowing the typical pattern of Apple, we would have expected the iPhone 5 to come in the summer, but there has been plenty of talk of delay -- arising mainly from issues with suppliers.If it were to be unveiled in summer originally, then Apple indeed delayed the roll-out, shutting the door to any speculation as it announced that the focus of this summer's Worldwide Developers conference would be the iOS and Mac OS -- not hardware.And there is apparent consensus that iPhone 5 may not be launched in June as was expected generally.Jefferies & Co.’s Peter Misek wrote that Apple is taking longer than expected to incorporate new "cloud"-based features into iOS, things that represent "a significant step forward" for the operating system, according to Jefferies & Co.’s Peter Misek."As a result, there will be an iPhone 5 introduction “in September/October," Misek told clients.
Reuters
