Now the iPad 2 is all nice and officially announced, we can concentrate on the next Apple rumour-feast – those pertaining to the iPhone 5. Given Apple's track record with iPhone releases, we fully expect the iPhone 5 to be announced in the summer – late June or July. So as the weather begins to warm up, we can expect to glimpse more rays of truth peeking out from behind thick bands of rumourcloud.
We've already heard much about what the iPhone 5 might and might not have when it eventually lands. Here's a round up of the choicest rumours we've heard thus far...
The iPhone 5 will have a dual-core processor
With so many Android phones coming equipped with Nvidia's Tegra 2 dual core chip this year, for many it's a given that the iPhone 5 will come with a dual core processor. Unsurprisingly, we heard a rumour today that the iPhone 5 will feature the same A5 dual core chip that's been seen in the iPad 2.
Obvious benefits of this include faster gaming, faster web browsing, faster multi-tasking faster everything, as well as better battery performance.
This could also mean 1080p video playback as well. Combined with iTunes home networking feature seen in iOS 4.3, you'd be able to access true HD-quality content on your iPhone 5 over a home Wi-Fi network.
The iPhone 5 will be available in white from launch
The non-appearance of the white iPhone 4 is a story that (still) gets routinely milked by tech blogs the world over – us included.
It looks like this may not be the case with the iPhone 5 though. China's Economic Daily News has reported that glass parts for the white iPhone 5 are already being shipped, with Wintek making parts for the pale handset.
We've already seen the iPad 2 arriving in pearly white as well, suggesting that Apple might have sorted out the paint problems it was having with the white iPhone 4.
The iPhone 5 will be thinner and have a 4-inch edge-to-edge screen
This leaked design and picture (again, from a Chinese source) suggests that the iPhone 5 will not only be smaller than the iPhone 4, but will feature an edge-to-edge display (or as close as), so that screen size shouldn't shrink as a result of this miniaturisation.
Digitimes reported in February that the iPhone 5's screen would measure 4-inches across, which if true, would give us a better idea about the size of the thing.
There's been a noticeable trend this year towards smartphones shedding the pounds. The LG Optimus Black has a 9.2mm waistline, and Samsung's Galaxy S II measures just 8.49mm thick. NEC's Medias (which looks to be Japan-only for now) is a super-slim 7.7mm thick.
So we expect Apple will one-up everyone again, and announce the world's first molecule-thick smartphone. Try topping that everyone else.
More seriously though, we imagine that the iPhone 5 will measure up at around 8.8mm – the same thickness as the iPad 2. Side by side, the two devices of exact same depth would look pretty nice.
The iPhone 5 will be out in April/the summer/September
iOS 4.3 has only just arrived and already there've been rumours of an iOS 5 event scheduled for April.
Last April saw the unveiling of iOS 4, which showed us that app multi-tasking was coming to the iPhone 4. So while chances of the iPhone 5 getting demoed itself this April, we'll almost certainly be afforded a glimpse of some of its capabilities, things like the aforementioned e-wallet payments.
New iterations of iPhones have historically always hits the shelves in the summer, but never the same date. The iPhone 4 arrived on the 24th June 4 2010, the 3GS hit on the 19th June 2009 and the iPhone 3G arrived on the 11th of July the year before that.
Chances are that Apple won't break this summer release date trend, given the emphasis that it places on reputation and building consumer trust.
However, FBR Capital Markets analyst Craig Berger reportedly said that that a July 2011 launch for the iPhone 5 is 'unlikey', apparently due to a slip up between various parts vendors. Berger said that a September launch is more probable.
There will be an iPhone 5 Nano
It's thought that a smaller or lower specced version of the iPhone 5 is in the works, presumably to compete against the tide of lower-end Android feature phones.
According to a report in Bloomberg, the so-called iPhone 5 Nano will be “a third smaller than the current iPhone” and won't have a physical home button.
An iPhone 5 Nano would be a smart move; perhaps one with a slightly smaller screen and without a dual camera set up. Not everybody is totally stoked about video calls and FaceTime but would like to have an iPhone, purely for apps and games.
