Apple's iPhone 5 will feature a 4-inch screen and a different casing from the iPhone 4, according to a new report from the blog 9to5Mac.
Apple's upcoming iPhone 5 will feature
a bigger screen and a different casing from the iPhone 4, suggests a new
posting on the Apple-centric blog 9to5Mac.
According to the Jan. 25 report's
"reliable source at Foxconn in China," the various prototypes circulating
around that production facility share some common features, including a 4-plus-inch
display and a casing that no longer follows the design aesthetics of the iPhone
4 and iPhone 4S. "No teardrop-shaped devices, as rumored in the lead up to the
iPhone 4S," related 9to5Mac. "Samples so far have been symmetrical in thickness
(also longer/wider)."
Scuttlebutt concerning a larger iPhone
5 screen has circulating for some time, as the blog points out. That being
said, variations between the prototypes suggest that Apple has yet to settle on
a release version. If Apple follows the release cadence it established with
previous iPhone iterations, this newest smartphone could make its debut in
either the summer or early fall timeframes.
Over the summer of 2011, analysts and
pundits appeared certain that the company would release an iPhone 5 with a
radically altered design and powerful new hardware. In October, however, Apple
executives unveiled the iPhone 4S, whose exterior seemed virtually identical to
the iPhone 4. However, a collection of new features-including Siri, a
voice-activated "digital personal assistant"-quickly helped the new smartphone
become a bestseller.
Sales of some 27.04 million iPhones
contributed to Apple's record-breaking fiscal 2012 first quarter, which ended
Dec. 31. During the Jan. 24 earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook attributed the
iPhone's robust sales numbers to a combination of what he called "breathtaking
customer reception" as well as pent-up demand from a particularly long gap
between new iPhone releases. Overall, quarterly revenue totaled $46.33 billion,
with a net profit of $13.06 billion.
In addition to the iPhone 5, rumors
suggest that Apple is readying a next-generation iPad-possibly with a
higher-resolution screen-for release sometime in the first half of the year.
Despite its blockbuster financial
results, Apple continues to face steady competition from both Google Android
manufacturers and Microsoft, the latter of which plans to introduce a series of
tablets later this year running the upcoming Windows 8 operating system. Its
new product releases-including iPhone 5-will go a long way toward determining
whether it can maintain that sort of performance over subsequent quarters.
Follow Nicholas Kolakowski on Twitter
Nicholas Kolakowski is a staff editor at eWEEK, covering Microsoft and other companies in the enterprise space, as well as evolving technology such as tablet PCs. His work has appeared in The Washington Post, Playboy, WebMD, AARP the Magazine, AutoWeek, Washington City Paper, Trader Monthly, and Private Air. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.
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