Apple working on smaller, cheaper iPhone - report

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc is working on a smaller and less expensive version of the iPhone , Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing sources.

The prototype device is about one-third smaller than the iPhone 4, the report said, citing a person who had seen it.

Apple has considered selling the new iPhone for $200 without a two-year wireless contract, Bloomberg reported.

Apple is aiming to unveil the device around the middle of this year, but the launch may be delayed or canceled altogether, the report said.

Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

The company often develops products it never brings to market.

According to the report, Apple is also working on a dual-mode phone that would be able to work with the world's two main wireless standards.

AT&T, which carries the iPhone on its wireless network in the United States, declined to comment. Verizon Wireless, which also carries the device, could not be reached for comment.

Shares of Cupertino, California-based Apple closed down 1 percent at $354.54 on the Nasdaq on Thursday.

(Reporting by Gabriel Madway and Sinead Carew, editing by Matthew Lewis)

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Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5 to be Announced by Apple on WWDC?

More rumors continue to swell as we have with regards to Apple’s release date for the iPhone 5 for Verizon. Apple is rumored to be doing its announcement for the Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5 this coming WWDC 2011. Although these rumors are not yet confirmed, all roads point to the this year’s WWDC for the big reveal.

Please take note that all we’re saying here are assumptions and what tech insiders are spreading through the blogosphere.

Here are the other so-called ‘leaks’.

Upgrades – New iTunes features like Ping and Air Play Extend and Fix Multitasking – we will also be having some changes in the multi tasking capabilities of both the Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5.
4G Network Compatability – It would be nice of the Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5 would get high compatibility with 4G network for the earlier versions such as the iPhone 3GS.
RFID – This technology is being developed to be added into the iPhone 5, making the Apple device your credit card, car key, or medical identifier tag.

That’s it for the Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5. Just stay tuned for more updates regarding the Verizon iPhone 5 and iOS 5.

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Expect iPhone 5 intro on June 6, says analyst

Apple will introduce the next iPhone on June 6, an analyst said today.

"There's absolutely no reason for them not to," said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst with Technology Business Research. "The pattern they've set has been so good for them, and they've set expectations that they'll do this every year."

The pattern Gottheil referred to is Apple's practice of launching its newest iPhone each of the past three years -- 2008, 2009, and 2010 -- during the keynote presentation of WWDC, an event it has held those years in the first week of June.

San Francisco's Moscone Center, the WWDC venue since 2003, lists an event on its current schedule for June 5-9 that's titled "Corporate Meeting," a generic placeholder the facility uses to mask events. Last year, the Moscone Center used that same label for the days that Apple later announced were those for WWDC.

The AppleBitch blog first reported on the Moscone schedule entry last week.

The last three years, Apple has introduced a new iPhone the first Monday of WWDC: Last year, that was June 7, while in 2009 and 2008 it was June 8 and June 9, respectively.

June 6 is the first Monday of the Moscone event likely representing WWDC.

"I fully expect a new iPhone then," said Gottheil, "with a new design and more speed. I'll be interested to see what they do with voice, which is an area Apple hasn't touched much."

More intelligent dial-by-voice software -- the feature was first introduced in 2009's iPhone 3GS -- would be welcome, said Gottheil.

In each of the last four years, Apple has put the iPhone on sale within weeks of WWDC's conclusion, with a June launch during three of those four. The odd-year-out was 2008, when Apple shipped the iPhone 3G on July 11.

Last year, Apple started selling the iPhone 4 on June 24, just over two weeks after the June 7 introduction.

Although consumers have been trained to anticipate a new iPhone each summer, the big question this year is whether Apple will release a new model not only for its long-standing GSM-based model -- the one sold by AT&T in the U.S. -- but also for the new CDMA-compliant smartphone that goes on sale later this week for Verizon customers.

"Would they want to sync up the CDMA and GSM [models] so soon?" Gottheil asked rhetorically. "Well..., yeah."

It's even possible that Apple will use the opportunity to merge the lines into one device, creating a dual-function iPhone that supports both network technologies.

"Clearly, Apple would like to get back to one SKU," said Gottheil, using the acronym for "stock-keeping unit," the code used by sellers to identify products.

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Verizon iPhone 4 to take most of BlackBerry/Droid base despite iPhone 5

Here’s a study that’ll have Apple smiling and Verizon not minding, but fans of the Droid and BlackBerry platforms cringing at the mere thought. The Verizon iPhone 4 is expected to claim the majority of Verizon’s BlackBerry and Droid users by day one of the upcoming Verizon iPhone 4 era. Nevermind day number two, or month number two, or the fact that the Verizon iPhone 5 can be expected in about half a year.

The numbers: a shocking two-thirds of Verizon BlackBerry users say they plan to switch to a Verizon iPhone 4 the day it hits retail stores next week. Slightly less than half of Verizon Droid users plan to do the same on the Verizon iPhone 4's first day.

These day-one iPhone 4 switcher numbers are limited strictly to Verizon’s base, and don’t include users of BlackBerry and Android based phones on other carriers (although they do show a blueprint for what could happen if and when the iPhone finally expands to T-Mobile and Sprint). The kicker is that these numbers, which come from a third party study reported on by PC Magazine, are based on what Verizon’s users plan to do the moment the Verizon iPhone 4 becomes available on February 10th. If two-thirds of Verizon BlackBerry users switch to the Verizon iPhone 4 immediately, as this study claims, how many more will make the move once they see the Verizon iPhone in action? And how many more are waiting to jump ship until the Verizon iPhone 5 arrives later this year? The same thing goes for the nearly half of Verizon’s Droid users who say they plan to change sides immediately. Other studies have shown the Android platform to only have an expected retention percentage in the twenties, and so these latest numbers, which show the Verizon Droid base about to fall by half in short order, come as no surprise – except to those geeks who had mistakenly confused Android sales with Android popularity.

For Verizon, these numbers have to be seen as good news even though they predict a mass exodus from Verizon’s own in-house Droid phone. Better for Verizon to lose its Droid folks to a Verizon iPhone 4 than to an AT&T iPhone 4. For Apple, it’s overwhelmingly good news if the study bears out into reality next week, but also a sign that a Sprint iPhone and a T-Mobile iPhone are needed in order to take advantage of the fact that many or even most BlackBerry and Android users would apparently rather be on an iPhone. This was already overwhelmingly anecdotally obvious, but now there are numbers (at least in survey form) to back it up. And it also means that while there may be hell to pay later when a Verizon iPhone 5 shows up sometime in 2011 and early adopters of the Verizon iPhone 4 are left wondering what happened, the specter of a soon-ish arriving iPhone 5 is clearly not hampering sales of the Verizon iPhone 4 in the mean time. Here’s more on the Verizon iPhone 4.

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Apple iPhone 5 ‘to feature NFC support’

The next model of Apple’s iPhone range could feature built-in Near Field Communication technology, allowing it to double as a mobile payment system, and a way of replicating your home computing experience on any Mac, according to reports.

Apple’s next iPhone could feature built-in Near Field Communication technology that will turn the device in to an electronic wallet, and allow Mac users to have exactly the same computing experience on any machine, according to the latest rumours.

Cult of Mac reports that an unnamed source informed them of the purpose of the NFC chip that is expected to be built in to the next-generation iPhone.

The technology blog reports that the chip will turn the iPhone in to an “e-wallet”, allowing owners to wave their iPhone over a contact pad in order to pay for items such as coffee, books or CDs in participating retailers.

But the source also claims that Apple has other plans for the NFC chip, and is exploring ways of using the technology to enable users to store their personal Mac computer settings on their iPhone, and then transfer those settings to another Mac with a flick of the wrist.

“For example, an NFC iPhone will allow users to carry a lot of their desktop data and settings with them, and load that data on to a compatible Mac,” reports Cult of Mac.

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Apple's NFC-ready iPad 2.0 and iPhone 5 head to manufacturing

Apple iPhone 5 is already placing orders for components and final manufacturing for its forthcoming NFC-savvy iPad 2.0 and iPhone 55 devices, bringing new manufacturers into the supply line and plotting for early and mid-summer ship dates (well, February production and May production cycles for some manifestation the following months) for the two devices, the latest reports claim.

Leaks from Pegatron overnight confirm the company has been contracted to manufacture ten million units of the next-generation iPhone 5-- that's ten million units in addition to an existing similar commitment to manufacture the Verizon iPhone 5.

Get ready to rumble

Meanwhile an additional report from the China Times seemingly confirms the iPad will go into manufacture in February with the iPhone 5 set to roll off of the production lines in May, just in time for its anticipated June debut, (assuming all the tests check out OK).

[This story is from Computerworld's Apple iPhone 5 Holic blog. Follow on Twitter or subscribe via RSS to make sure you don't miss a beat.]

iPad 2 will be limited, increasing in the months ahead. Apple iPhone 5 is apparently aiming to shift 60-70 million iPhones and perhaps 30 million iPads this year, plus tens of millions of iPod touch devices. These are also likely to gain NFC-based payment support in September.

Securing Apple iPhone 5's big iPhone 5orders has caused a little consternation at Pegatron (formerly part of ASUS). To meet the order schedule the company has cancelled its annual holiday break and will triple employee salaries for the period instead. iPhones are mainly in production at Pegatron's plants in Shanghai, China, though some iPhone 5manufacture is also scheduled to take place in its Suzhou, China plants.

Your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch 'iWallet'

We now know the future iPhones and iPad 2.0's will be NFC-capable, meaning the 'iWallet' is finally on its way. Benjamin Vigier, Apple iPhone 5's new Mobile Commerce Manager has huge experience in the NFC field, including stints at Starbucks and PayPal.

This morning Bloomberg reports Richard Doherty, of Envisioneering Group who claims inside Apple iPhone 5 sources have tipped him off to expect NFC facilities in the next-gen iPhone.

(Image above by kind permission of Patently Apple iPhone 5)

Apple iPhone 5 may also seed free or subsidized NFC payments terminals to merchants in an attempt to popularize mobile payment solutions.

There could be smoke in such fire: Apple iPhone 5 last year reportedly was looking to acquire contactless/near field communications tech firm, VIVOtech, a provider of "Contactless/near field communications (NFC) payment software, NFC smart posters, contactless readers/writers, and over the air card provisioning, promotion, and transaction management infrastructure software,".

iTunes payment systems

There could indeed be a slight chance Apple iPhone 5 might acquire Square, in order to use its technologies alongside iPod touch and iPhone 5units to create such payment-taking kiosks.

Doherty claims Apple iPhone 5 will revamp iTunes so it will hold not only users’ credit-card account information but also loyalty credits and points. Kind of the same thing I speculated on in this report. And yes, it puts iTunes up against conventional credit card firms.

Apple iPhone 5 has a host of patents to protect such ideas, including the iPad, iBuy and iCoupons patents, patents for airline ticketing and boarding passes, product marketing, live event ticketing and more.

No-show Pico

There had been some expectation which I confess I didn't share that the next-gen devices may also host Pico projectors -- miniature video projectors so you can share video or presentations from your mobile device -- this seems unlikely on the basis of a second report.

Power consumption, poor image quality and weak brightness mean devices integrating this technology are unlikely to appear before next year, reports claim. Despite this, Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and RIM have introduced smartphones with integrated pico projectors. The quality and price of the technologies need to fall before any wide-scale consumer roll-out.

Endgames

As discussed elsewhere (here, or here), next-gen Apple iPhone 5 mobile devices are also expected to host cameras throughout, faster processors, much-improved graphics processors, more memory and are likely to be slimmer than before.

The next-generation iPhone 5(which some say may be called the iPhone 54S, rather than iPhone 55, but what's in a name?) may kick against this trend, integrating a hybrid CDMA/GSM radio for use on all global networks. Hosting such a radio may make the device thicker.

Apple iPhone 5 meanwhile is thought to have acquired some huge chunks of the component supply chain in a recently-disclosed $3.9 billion supply deal. This deal is likely to make it even more difficult for competitors to bring their vapor-ware iPad competitors to market.

What do you think? Are you going to be buying one of these new Apple iPhone 5 devices? Are you excited or repelled at the notion of your smartphone also becoming your 'iWallet'? What else would you like Apple iPhone 5's new crop of devices to do? Please let us all know in comments below, and I'd once again like to invite you to follow me on Twitter so I can let you know when these items are published here first on Computerworld.

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Why the Verizon iPhone is a Big Deal For AT&T

we believe the Internet rumor mill and the usually well-informed sources of the Wall Street Journal, then the launch of the Verizon CDMA iPhone 4 is imminent. It appears as if Apple won't make a big deal about the announcement, even if it is a critical step in the market expansion of the smartphone. AT&T has good reason to be concerned as the company has relied on an arrogant iPhone strategy and will now have to compete with a powerful rival. However, if you are thinking about buying a CDMA iPhone, you may want to think twice as the timing of this launch is rather confusing.

What happened to Apple's secrecy? Isn't it disappointing that already know details about an event that is most likely covering the introduction of the CDMA iPhone for Verizon and why do we even know the launch date (February 3)?

Let's just assume that all those rumors are true and that Verizon will, in fact, sell the iPhone next month. What does it mean for each party involved?

Apple: It is about time!

Apple is expected to be downplaying the importance of the Verizon iPhone. Apple cannot raise expectations, if Verizon simply gets the iPhone 4 as well and Apple surely wants to stay out of a carrier bitch fight. However, the iPhone 4 at Verizon is critical for the company's future success.

AT&T accounts for 30% of all iPhone sales, yet there have been a continuous complaints that there is no CDMA iPhone for Verizon customers and supply has not been able to match demand. AT&T has been pushed several times to its limit since the launch of the first-gen iPhone as far as network capability and even launch procedures were concerned.

According to the WSJ, Apple sold about 11.1 million iPhones in the first nine months of 2009. Verizon is estimated to be able to sell about 9-12 million devices this year. Verizon leads the U.S. market with more than 93 million subscribers and will be key for Apple to sell more iPhones. Even if Apple makes a killing on iPhone hardware sales, we also know that Android has just surpassed Apple in U.S. subscriber market share. The (possible) availability of a Verizon iPhone is not a day late.

Verizon: Business as usual

Carrying the iPhone doesn't hurt, but it isn't as important anymore for Verizon as it would have been a year ago. Androids are wildly popular and Verizon could survive very well without the iPhone, even if we know that iPhones tend to have higher average revenues per user than any other phone model. Of course, Verizon will be able to sell boat loads of the iPhone without putting much effort into it, however, the company has much more leverage against Apple than AT&T has. For Verizon, the iPhone is just another phone, albeit a rather attractive one. I doubt that Verizon will be dealing with crap that is being dished out by Apple. Verizon has one disadvantage against Apple: It gets phone that is not brand new anymore and there may be implications as far as the upgrade cycle is concerned.

AT&T: The party is over

Let's be honest. The iPhone played very well into the underlying arrogance that has always been present within AT&T. The most obvious sign of this arrogance are ridiculous pricing plans that do not promote innovation, but restrict it. If you can't have unlimited data on a phone that is the role model of every Internet device out there and unlimited calling/texting and 2 GB Internet cost $115 plus fees and taxes per month, then there is something seriously wrong. AT&T is about to find out what may happen if you take advantage of your consumers with high prices an inferior network and restrict innovative software from running on your network. The immediate impact on AT&T will be that the company will have to revise its service plans to remain competitive. That is, for AT&T customer, a good thing.

Open question 1: What about the white iPhone?

There are some who claim that the whole reason for the delay for the white iPhone was the fact that Apple wanted to give Verizon something special. I personally doubt that the white iPhone will debut before the iPhone 5 is announced. It may be dead altogether as the release date of this model has become a running joke. We should not be expecting any major news as far as models are concerned. Verizon will get the regular black iPhone 4. Everything else would be a huge surprise and an insult to AT&T.

Open question 2: What about the crappy network?

I have been wondering whether the network really matters for a phone. AT&T's network is perceived to be about as crappy is it can get and AT&T recently resorted to rather questionable claims that it has the fastest network in the nation. Verizon has the better network and the obvious iPhond 4 choice would be CDMA now, at least as long as you aren't traveling a lot out of the country where GSM comes in handy. If history repeats itself, network quality should play a big role in iPhone 4 sales and AT&T will have to invest much more in its network and marketing to change the quality and perception of its infrastructure.

Open question 3: What about Facetime and Skype?

Remember when the iPhone 4 and Facetime were announced - and Steve Jobs noted that it would only work on Wi-Fi for now, which was a concession to AT&T. AT&T also canceled the availability of the all-you-can-eat data plan just before the iPhone 4 was announced and gave us a hint to be more considerate when eating up data bandwidth. However, apps such as Facetime will need open limit data plans. Back in June, Jobs said that Apple was working with other carriers to enable Facetime over 3G. I would not be too surprised if Verizon in fact allows this app to run over its network. The company already allows Skype-to-Skype data calls via its network, which AT&T does not. Video calling and Wi-Fi calling could become an interesting battlefield and AT&T could finally receive enough pressure to open up its network (and invest more to provide more capacity.) Verizon could easily embarrass AT&T with this one.

Open question 4: What about the iPhone 5?

Before you run and buy a Verizon iPhone, keep in mind that this is essentially an old phone that will be replaced soon. When the iPhone 5 is released, you will be locked into a 2-year contract with no way to a reasonable upgrade. If you want the new iPhone when it comes out, the upgrade could be rather expensive. The timing for the introduction of the CDMA phone is rather awkward and create a huge mess for Verizon. We know that Apple only cares about itself and will launch a new product when it is ready - not when its partners are ready. AT&T was forced to bend to pressure from its customers when Apple introduced the iPhone 4 at a time when it interfered with the traditional 22-month upgrade cycle and Verizon could see a similar scenario. For all those who can wait half a year, the advice can only be to not buy the Verizon CDMA iPhone, but wait for the iPhone 5, which we should get by mid-2011.

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