iPhone 4G roundup: The week in Apple rumors and leaks

May 27, 2010 - By Justin E. Gehrke

A week doesn’t go by without a handful of new Apple and, more specifically, iPhone 4G rumors. This week was no exception. Tech news sites and blogs reported new information and, in some cases, rehashed what we’ve already heard.

What did we learn? For starters, the beginning of the week brought news that Walmart had lowered the price of the iPhone 3GS (16GB model) to $97.00. This prompted some to rush out and take advantage of the savings. Others welcomed the news but deferred entering into a new, two-year AT&T contract, in hopes that the price cut pointed toward a June release of the iPhone 4G (or HD). This theory was reinforced by other rumors, as well. What are these other tasty nuggets of rumor-filled goodness? We’ve gone to the work to lay them all out for you in one place.

You've seen it before, but the joke never gets old...

Monday

Monday also brought us iPhone 4G (or HD) rumors from Redmond Pie. Supposedly, an internal source reported that preparations were underway to sell a CDMA version of the device on none other than the Sprint network. This ran contrary (or parallel, depending upon your view of the rumors) to a previously published reported alleging the next generation iPhone would be sold by Verizon Wireless.

Tuesday

A day later, on Tuesday, May 25, 2010, an Examiner post cited confirmation that Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple, would be delivering the keynote speech at the upcoming WWDC. They supported the claim of an imminent iPhone 4G release with a MacRumors-published email from Steve Jobs, in response to an email from Bryan Webster. Jobs’ reportedly responded to Webster’s comments of “I hope you have some good WWDC announcements to blow them (sic: Google) out of the water…” with the statement, “You won’t be disappointed.”

Wednesday

Wednesday rolled in with another morsel of iPhone 4G information. According to a IntoMobile report, AT&T tipped its hand by blocking off all vacation days for employees, for the month of June. Assumably, the move to ensure all able-bodied employees are on-hand is in anticipation of the surge in business that is normally associated with the release of Apple iPhones, since the first generation release back in 2007.

In a rumor that hasn’t been too widely publicized, Touch Reviews published posts on May 26, 2010 citing conversations with Vijay Rakesh, an analyst with Sterne Agee, as evidence that production of the iPhone 4G has been delayed. What is the reason cited? According to Rakesh’s remarks and their analysis, the lack of availability of flash memory (possibly due in part to the high tempo of iPad 3G and Wi-Fi production) could very well prevent the iPhone 4G from being produced, in significant numbers, until as late as September 2010.

In what is undeniably the oddest iPhone 4G rumor of the week, Digitimes published a post with Ming-Chi Kuo, one of their senior analysts, in which he answers a wide range of iPhone 4G-related questions. As a side note to the discussion of whether or not the Gizmodo-purchased iPhone 4G prototype was a real, Apple-produced device, Digitimes writes:

“Apple actually has another product codenamed N91 for the project, which offers less change from previous iPhones compared with the N90. It’s a parallel product to back up the N90 in case there are major delays due to significant modifications in casing, display resolution, digital camera support and so forth.”

If this is the case and there is an entire other version, is it ready for production? If so, would it use the same flash memory as the iPad or the one used in the current generation model. The answer to this question could go a long way toward indicating if a second “N91″ would actually be a viable substitute in the interim.

Thursday

That’s it. All of the big rumors have been wrapped up into a single post. Are all of them true? Are any of them true? These questions will likely go unanswered until at least June 7, 2010, when Apple kicks off WWDC 2010. Considering that’s a whole ten days away, we’re likely to see a slew of new rumors about the iPhone 4G (or iPhone HD, iPhone 4…or even iPad Mini or iPhone Pi).

Friday?

On second thought, it is only Thursday. We could see another iPhone 4G leak tomorrow. It could even be one that says the next generation iPhone will have a kinetic battery that maintains its charge, simply through movement associated with normal usage. (Okay, we just made that one up. It is not…we repeat…not true.) The one thing that is certain (versus being a rumor) is that when the new rumors come out, we’ll be ready and waiting to pass them on to you.