The next iPhone from Apple (AAPL) will be unveiled at a press event on Oct. 4, and the iPhone we’ll see will be the fifth major iteration of Apple’s smartphone. It may not be called iPhone 5, but it will be the iPhone 5, whatever its name. It’s title isn’t the only thing up in the air, though. It’s time for our rundown of what we probably will and won’t see at next Tuesday’s event.
All but guaranteed is that Apple will unveil a new smartphone next week. There’s still a question as to whether or not the company might reveal more than one new device. Rumors suggest that an iPhone 4S might accompany a new iPhone 5, boasting minor changes and carrying a reduced price tag to generally expand the iPhone’s reach, with one possible target being prepaid cellular-service subscribers.
How likely is it that we’ll see two iPhones at next week’s event? Very, given Apple’s track record. Generally, when Apple unveils a new smartphone, it uses the existing model as a lower-cost option, with 8 GB of onboard storage for entry-level shoppers. At the very least, that’s what it will do this time around. Some rumors suggest, however, that we’ll see a slightly changed iPhone 4 reborn as a 4S, with tweaked internal specifications (such as more RAM) and the same physical design.
I predict we will see both a significantly redesigned iPhone 5 and a more familiar iPhone 4-based model next week. The iPhone 4 is still among the world’s top-selling smartphones, so Apple stands to win big by recasting it for the low-cost market. Tens of millions of consumers are probably only a couple of hundred dollars’ discount from jumping on the iOS bandwagon.
