Juicy New iPhone Rumors

Submitted by Chad Shmukler on

The Apple iPhoneIt's been a while since we've had any truly ambitious iPhone rumors come around the bend. Enter vim3 weblog. The writers there claim that Steve Jobs and Apple have been not only hush-hush about unreleased iPhone features, but have gone as far as to mislead the public in hopes of keeping iPod sales healthy. vim3 states,

"Why would Steve downplay some of the features? Our source says that since the iPhone would be released in June, Apple did not want to affect iPod sales. Apple has not released a new video player version of their iPod since 2005, despite the update to the 5G iPod in 2006."

Included in their list of hidden iPhone features are a user replaceable battery, wireless N support, iTunes media streaming, OTA iTunes downloads. Most importantly, vim3 claims that Apple and Jobs haven't been truthful about the flash memory storage provided by the iPhone (4GB and 8GB models). The blog claims that the iPhone will actually have "substantially larger" storage.

All sound too good to be true? Well ... you know what they say.

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Comments

karl248 replied on

It's not misleading, it's just odd that they'd say 4GB/8GB if they knew they intended to offer more storage for the same price.

Why not give people more reasons to buy? Why hide it?

tl546 replied on

Why don't you guys think about it for a few seconds. If they debuted the iPhone in January and didn't plan to launch for almost 6 months later, and it costs just alittle more than a video iPod, people would stop buying iPods. With them saying there is low memory and high price, they guarenteed themselves that iPod sales would stay strong. By releasing the real specs a few weeks before they launch, it creates a lot more buzz, and better sales.

Zachary replied on

Hey everyone. I think (because I hope) that the iPhone will have more storage space. Here's some reasons why...

1) Price

Difference between 4GB and 8GB iPod Nano = $50.
Difference between 30GB and 80GB iPod = $100.
Difference between “4GB” and “8GB” iPhone = $100.

As far as we know, the only difference between the two iPhones is the storage space. The iPhones pricing plan matches that of the 30GB and 80GB models.

2) iPhone capabilities limited by space

The iPhone does almost everything – makes phone calls, displays and TAKES pictures, plays music and movies. How much it offers would really be limited by the 4GB/8GB storage space. Apple states that the 30GB iPod can hold 40 hours of video. Using that formula with the 4GB/8GB models – the 4GB would hold 5.3 hours of video, the 8GB would hold 10.6 hours of video. 5 hours of video minus your music library means you’d probably only get one full length movie on there. Yuck.

The majority of portable media players are in the 30GB to 80GB capacity range. However a few video players do hold under 10GB, so I could be wrong here.

3) Previous iPod generations ready for an upgrade

The first, second, third, fourth, and fifth generation iPods were all released around a year apart (01, 02, 03, 04, 05). The iPod video was originally released around 1 year & 8 months ago (10/12/05), with a small upgrade on September 06. There is a iPod generation out there who want to purchase a new one but are well aware the iPod video is overdue for an upgrade. So they are waiting it out for the next big one. The iPhone is definitely a “big one” but I doubt a 30GB iPod owner will “upgrade” to a 8GB iPhone with cool features.

However, the iPhone is limited to service – so that doesn’t answer this waiting generations call if they don’t have AT&T. So again, I could be wrong.

4) Wishful thinking.

“On December 5, 2006 Toshiba announced it would ship a 100 GB 1.8-inch hard disk (model MK1011GAH) starting January 2007, the largest capacity yet of this size. The little drive spins at 4200 rpm and happens to be exactly the right size to fit into an iPod or a MacBook

Although Toshiba was careful not to mention anything about its relationship with Apple and how its 1.8-inch disks occupy the interiors of Apple's 80GB iPods, this is some pretty solid evidence that we'll be seeing a 100GB iPod soon, perhaps around the same time we see the new iPhone. – CHARLIE WHITE” posted on Gizmodo.com.

Maybe the iPhone is really bigger then the rumors? 100GB?

Well, just some ideas I’m throwing out there. Maybe we’ll see a 30GB/80GB iPhone and a new 100GB iPod with iPhone characteristic (new look, touch screen, so on…) but without phone capabilities? Or… we’ll have to settle for the 4GB/8GB.

Thanks

- Zach

gemniii replied on

How could it be misleading to offer more memory?
We were told X amount, they give us 2X we can decide to just use 1X.
More memory is always welcome.
Remember - it was Jobs who thought 640K was NOT enough and went for the flat memory space.
Wireless N would be GREAT and I wonder about the capability to do VOIP.

bketchum replied on

My thoughts are... Apple loves to show overachievement, so I can see them offering 8 and 16 GB iPhone models. They also like to offer build to order, so maybe 32 GB....for the deep pockets. Indeed, flash memory prices have dropped a lot, and Apple has substantial buying power. It seems like good business sense to buy the same memory as they use in their top-selling nanos....which suggests that Apple's next version of nanos will go 8 and 16 GB. It's an understatement to say that Apple has a lot riding on the iPhone. At this point I suspect they are likely a bit nervous about entering this unknown space. They may be willing to slice a bit off their margins to get the larger memory into the devices and pad their chances of success.

Chad Shmukler replied on

Agreed. One of the rough points for a lot of people, I think, is the 8GB max without the ability to expand via an SD card. Were they to offer 16 or 20GB - the lack of an SD card slot would, for me at least, cease to be a concern.

steve replied on

I agree about the flash. Flash memory of larger capacity is now available at roughly the same price point as the 8 gig was in January, when the phone was announced. It is hard to imagine a customer who would complain about being 'mislead' when you are giving them more than they expected. Keep in mind, too, that ATT and Apple have made a point of taking NO preorders. This leaves them morally and practically free to offer whatever they want on the day of introduction.
For me, as well as 'me', more memory would make it hugely more compelling to buy this phone on day one.

steve

me replied on

If they double the flash, that would be significantly more to me and given the relationship apple has with flash vendors it is not unreasonable to say so.

Chad Shmukler replied on

Yeah but would they publicize a false amount, get AT&T in on the ruse, etc etc?

Anders Batten replied on

OTA downloads, maybe. "Significantly more storage"? Those people are full of it.

videob0x replied on

Here's hoping Zach is on point. :)