iPhone 5: Release Date, Photos, Video, and Rumors

I won’t lie to you; part of me cannot wait for the next iPhone. Luckily that day is swiftly arriving.

TechCrunch is reporting that a KGI Securities analyst by the name of Ming-Chi Kuo is claiming that the new iPhone and iPad mini will drop in September. What is it that we have to look forward to? A mere spec boost? Or will Apple have some design changes to throw into the mix?

Traditionally if you pay the slightest attention to Apple and its release cycle we can determine that the next iPhone and iPad will have a different look form the current generations. Apple has a trend of keeping the same design aesthetics for two years before switching things up. So in this light, it is reasonable to beleave that we will see a larger screen on the iPhone 5, ermm “The New iPhone”, and possibly a different form factor for the much anticipated iPad mini.

The ‘New iPhone’ (iPhone 5)

The next iPhone we see in store without a doubt will be named the ‘New iPhone’. Much like the ‘New iPad’, But what about the details?!

Release Date?
The word on the street is that the New iPhone will be announced sometime in September and launch early October. My magical guess is that the phone will be announced September 10th and hit the market October 12th.

UPDATE: Everyone is reporting a September 12th announcement date. I will stick with my October 12th release date.

Screen will be 16:9:
The rumors bubbling underneath Gotham are that the iPhone 5 will have a larger 4.08 inch display and keep the same width as the current iPhone 4/4S bring the estimated resolution to 1,136 x 640 pixels. Finally the iPhone will shift into the 16:9 aspect ration, that’s the same aspect ratio on your computer displays, TVs, and most Android phones. Hooray for developers!

Why it makes sense:
The iPhone is a consumption device; it always has and always will be a consumption device. The 16:9 aspect ratio makes sense for movies and tv shows.

Dock Connector:
Say goodbye to your 30 pin dock connector. Say hello to the new 19 pin dock connector. This means that all of your old cords, docks, and chargers will be worthless on your new device. Now I know most of you Apple haters are saying that this ‘fix’ that is not needed, and you very well may be correct.

Why it makes sense:
At the end of the day a smaller connector on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch means that all of these devices can become smaller. Take a look at the current generation iPads and iPod touches. The dock connectors look silly! Slim them down a bit and shizam! You have a slightly thinner device with a connector port that is ascetically pleasing and probably supports Thunderbolt.

Camera:
Currently the iPhone 4s is packing an 8 Megapixel shooting on rear and a horrible front facing camera. The New iPhone should be upgraded to a 10 Megapixel camera to keep it self ahead of the game, but rumors have it that it will get a slightly better 8 Megapixel Sony camera. On the up side we should get an HD front facing camera to go along with all the other “Facetime HD” cameras on Apples new laptops.

NFC in my pocket:
Currently only a few phones on the market have the pleasure of claiming to have NFC, notably the Samsung Galaxy SIII. This time around we should be getting a nice load of NFC on our handset. NFC stands for Near Field Communication. What is it good for? Well you might have noticed those ATM checkout machines with a WiFi looking symbol at your local Starbucks or McDonalds. Those are activated, and can process payment, via this NFC technology. So next time you are at your local KFC you can pay with your NFC, or something like that.

Why it makes sense:
This most recent release of iOS 6 will include a nice app that will hold your ticket and credit card information. So why not make this whole package a bit easier to use and throw in that NFC.

Battery:
Everyone keep your fingers crossed that those rumors about the hydrogen batteries are correct. Longer battery life on my iPhone would be amazing… you know not like the terrible life on the iPhone 4s.

Why it does not make sense:
I never get what I want when it comes to the iPhone. Giving us a hardware boost, screen change, and dock connector is more than enough radical change for the boys in Cupertino. Though on the same note this is not Jobs ball game anymore.

Hardware:
Oddly not many people are talking about the hardware on the new iPhone 5. What you can expect is a dual-core 1GHz A5x processor, with quad-core graphics, found in the ‘New iPad’ (iPad 3). On the RAM side you can expect a nice 1GB also found in the ‘New iPad’. I highly doubt we will see the A6 quad-core CPU that everyone has been waiting for.

Why it makes sense:
Apple has got caught up in the small iterations, and to be perfectly honest that is fine. We honestly do not need a quad-core CPU with quad-core graphics and 3GB of RAM in our phones. Until the market and its applications have shifted into this realm, so much hardware is somewhat ridiculous.

UPDATE: This video was released this morning showing the suspected parts assembled right before your eyes!

Design:
This is somewhat the kicker for most people. It should look different right? Well it has to, at least a little bit. Many of you probably want to see something that bares no resemblance to the current iPhone 4/4S and I support that idea. With the taller screen we have to get a slight redesign. This does not mean that we get a design discipline shift. The new iPhone very well may have the same silver/metal band surrounding its glass front and back. I personally do not take offense to ether option.

Apple was expected to ditch the hard home button but it looks as though we will have to wait another round or two to see the touch button implemented. I wont lie I enjoy the tactility of the home button on my iPad vs the touch buttons on my HTC One X.

Why it does not make sense:
iLab Factory posted the images below. They claim that theses are the current parts for the next generation iPhone. While the device as a whole makes much sense in Apple’s design aesthetic the back of the device does not. I find it hard to believe that Apple would make the rear of their phone half glass and half aluminium. Even though the entire phone is glass and aluminium the division on the back seams to stray far away from Apple’s current design discipline. On an upside, I really enjoy the dark aluminium. Let’s hope that’s liquid metal!
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