You only have to wait until 6pm (BST) to find out what Apple has in store for us as the next iPhone – whether that be an iPhone 5, an iPhone 4S, or both. But for those of you that can’t get enough of the rumours and speculation that surrounds these releases, we’ve got a round up of what you might be expecting in a few hours.
Hardware
Size and Shape:
All signs point to a relatively similar design to the iPhone 4, but slightly thinner and also likely a bit bigger to accommodate a bigger display.
Screen:
Signs point towards a larger 4″ screen coming to the iPhone 5 along with the retina display 326 PPI. An iPhone 4S may keep the same iPhone 4 screen though.
Camera:
Upping the megapixels is a standard upgrade for each iPhone iteration, and an iPhone 5 will probably offer an 8 or 10MP back camera, possibly with the ability to shoot 1080p full HD video.
CPU:
All signs point towards the iPhone CPU being upgraded to the same 1GHz dual-core Apple A5 chip currently found in the iPad 2 with the ability to play 1080p video with ease. But this may even get a bump to 1.2 GHz to keep in line with offerings from competitors like Samsung and HTC.
4G/LTE:
With 4G/LTE networks still relatively rare across the globe, and the 4G chips serious battery suckers – it is unlikely the iPhone 5 will see 4G technology, but you can never count it out.
NFC (Digital Wallet):
Even more so than 4G, Near Field Communication (NFC) is only available in very very limited places. The technology could be useful, but it will likely be added to the iPhone in future generations.
Software
iOS 5:
The latest incarnation of iOS will be coming to older model iPhones as well, but offers a host of improvements including over the air (OTA) syncing and updates, as well as integration with Twitter and Apple’s forthcoming iCloud service.
iCloud:
Apple’s cloud service that will enable iPhone users to stream their music from the cloud without fees as well as offer syncing, backup and other cloud integration tools.
Assistant:
Possibly the most interesting completely new addition to the iPhone 5 will be Assitant, which is the culmination of Apple’s purchase of the Siri artificial intelligence engine last year. It can do everything from finding a restaurant in your local vicinity, to booking a table, and ordering a taxi home all with a couple of voice commands. And it learns as you go along – see the video below:
Price
Always a difficult one to judge, but any iPhone 5 is likely to cost roughly the same as a current iPhone 4 (so don’t expect it much cheaper than free on a £45/month 28 or 24 month tariff). However, if Apple brings out a cut down iPhone 4S or even an iPhone Nano then this should be extremely competitively priced against similar Android models – look for it for free on a £25 or £30/month tariff.
Interested in the latest mobile phones? Why not check out our Buyers’ Guide to 2012 Smartphones >>