Apple's iPhone 5 will feature an aluminum back and lack that troublesome exterior antenna rim, according to the latest rumors.
Apple put iPad 2 rumors to rest by unveiling the
next-generation tablet March 2, clearing the way for media and bloggers to
obsess about another company product reportedly in the pipeline: the iPhone 5.
If Apple follows its pattern from past years, this summer
will see the release of its next iPhone. And according to a report in Taiwan's
Economic Daily News,
as
repeated March 7 on blogs such as Apple Insider, Apple's upcoming
smartphone will emphasize aluminum over the iPhone 4's glass casing, and
possibly eliminate the exterior antenna rim that has caused the company no end of
headaches.
The iPhone 5 will also reportedly include Apple's A5
processor, just unveiled in conjunction with the iPad 2. Backing the smartphone
with aluminum instead of glass, in theory, will help prevent the scratches that
cause a certain subset of iPhone users to burst into tears of unimaginable
grief.
The elimination of the current iPhone's exterior antenna rim
could slam the final coffin-nail into an issue that's plagued Apple since last
summer, when iPhone 4 owners reported that gripping the smartphone in a certain
way, with their bare hand, resulted in radical signal dampening. Those "death
grip" reports sprung back to life with this year's release of the Verizon
iPhone. A bumper or slipcase around the iPhone 4's antenna rim will solve the
issue, at the cost of the device's minimalist aesthetics.
Rumors
have flown for months about possible additions to the iPhone 5, with
pundits freely conjecturing about everything from more powerful cameras and
upgraded hardware to 3G-enabled FaceTime video-conferencing.
The introduction of the iPhone 4 on Verizon has the
possibility to alter how and when Apple chooses to debut the next version. The
possibility exists that it could stick to the traditional schedule, releasing
the iPhone 5 on AT&T at the usual point during the summer, followed by a
Verizon-compatible device in early February-that would keep both carriers'
devices on the yearly refresh cycle that Apple seems to prefer for many of its
products. But there's also the chance that Apple could debut an iPhone 5 this
summer compatible with both carriers. Or even push its summer refresh cycle
until later in the year.
That uncertainty, coupled with Apple's habitual refusal to
share information about upcoming releases, helps keep the company's rumor mill
at a constant, deafening buzz. But as the iPad 2 demonstrated, that rumor mill
is only semi-accurate at best when it comes to predicting new hardware and
software.
Email
Print
