Johannesburg, 28 Sep 2011
After months of rumours and speculation, Apple has finally sent out official invitations for an iPhone event to be held next week Tuesday, with the tagline “Let's talk iPhone”.
It is widely expected that Apple's new CEO, Tim Cook, will unveil the iPhone 5. The event will be held at Apple's Cupertino campus instead of the typically larger venues used by the company to make major announcements.
The event is Apple's first iPhone event since June last year when the iPhone 4 was unveiled.
Analysts also expect that the company may release a second, cheaper iPhone model, based on the current iPhone 4, along with the iPhone 5 at next week's event.
The iPhone was initially introduced in 2007 and its all touch display has remained the gold standard in the smartphone market. According to Reuters, Apple sold 20.34 million iPhones in the third quarter, helping it vault past Nokia and Samsung Electronics to become the world's biggest smartphone maker.
Reuters also reports that Hon Hai Precision Industries and Pegatron of Taiwan will make the new phone, and have been told to gear up capacity for up to 45 million units in total.
Among the many rumours surrounding the iPhone 5, the next-generation handset is said to have an 8MP camera, an aluminium back, a larger screen and a slight tear-drop design.
One more thing?
As next week's event will mark the first release without Steve Jobs at the helm of the company, speculation has been sparked as to whether the presentation will follow the same trademark formula.
Apple has become known for adding “one more thing” to its presentations and product launches - and as Mashable points out, that element of surprise has become almost an Apple trademark.
Among the possible extras that Apple could reveal is the Facebook iPad app, which has been in the works for some time. Other rumours include an improved iPad or an Apple TV.
Rumours abound
Last week, former US vice-president and member of the Apple board, Al Gore, inadvertently confirmed the company would release the new iPhone.
As headline speaker at the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit, held in Sandton on Thursday, Gore quipped in an aside during his speech: “Not to mention the new iPhones coming out next month. That was a punt.”
Prior to Gore's statements, the iPhone 5 rumour mill was fuelled with images of possible iPhone 5 cases.
The images appeared briefly on the site of Case-Mate before being replaced by a cryptic page saying “We'll have your cases when you have your new iPhone”.
Share