Apple to unveil latest iPhone
Posted Oct 4, 2011 6:18 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
More than a year after launching the iPhone 4, Apple Inc. will be unveiling a new, more powerful version of its wildly popular smartphone, Tuesday.
The announcement is expected at 11 a.m. MST.
Last week, Apple Inc. emailed invitations to a media event at its headquarters in Cupertino on Tuesday morning. The invite said “let’s talk iPhone,” implying the secretive company intends to show off the latest version of the device.
CBS tech expert Katie Linendoll said the phone is expected to be sleeker, faster and have a better camera.
“We’re going to see an eight-megapixel and also the cap to take high-def video – that could be huge,” Linendoll said.
There could also be more than one phone.
“We might also see an iPhone 4’s,” Linendoll explained. “We don’t know if we’re going to see one phone or if we’re going to see two.”
The first iPhone came out in 2007, and the phone’s signature slick looks, high-resolution screen and intuitive software have gained millions of fans over the years. There were 39 million iPhones sold just between January and the end of June.
The new iPhone is expected to have a number of changes, the biggest of which will likely be under the hood: the inclusion of Apple’s latest iOS mobile software, iOS 5, which has been slated for release this fall.
The software will include things such as wireless device setup and content syncing, and beefed-up camera, email and Web-browsing apps.
A new service called iMessage will allow iOS 5 users to send text messages to each other over Wi-Fi or wireless carriers’ data networks, while a folder called Newsstand will corral newspaper and magazine app subscriptions in one place to make it easier to find them
When it comes out, the software will also be available for Apple’s iPad, iPhone 4 and 3GS and the two most recent generations of the iPod Touch.
The new iPhone is also expected to include Apple’s forthcoming iCloud service, which will store content such as music, documents, apps and photos on Apple’s servers and let you access them wirelessly on numerous devices.
As for hardware, a new iPhone isn’t expected to look that much different from the iPhone 4, though it could be thinner and have a bigger screen. The existing iPhone is 0.94 centimetres thick and has a display measuring 8.9 centimetres at the diagonal.
An improved rear camera is anticipated, too. The existing iPhone has a five-megapixel camera on its rear. A number of recently released smartphones have moved to eight-megapixel cameras.
One of the most notable hardware changes many industry watchers are predicting is the inclusion of a more powerful chip: Apple’s dual-core A5 processor, which is the same chip it uses in its current iPad. The iPhone 4 runs on Apple’s older A4 chip, and the move to a more capable chip should improve things such as multitasking, opening apps and gaming.
Analysts also believe Apple could also use the event to trot out new iPods and updates to its iTunes music software, which it usually does in the fall anyway. Last September, Apple announced updates to iTunes and a line of revamped iPods, which included a version of the iPod Nano with a touch screen.
But Linendoll said the real focus Tuesday will be on new Apple CEO Tim Cook.
“All eyes are on him, the pressure is on for investors and the pressure is on for Apple brand to make this absolutely as smooth as possible,” she said.
Cook took over when Steve Jobs stepped down as CEO in August due to illness. Although Jobs did emerge from medical leave twice this year to present Apple’s innovations, Cook is expected to take the lead this time.
Though not nearly as recognizable as Jobs, Cook, formerly Apple’s chief operating officer, has been running Apple since January. For years, he has been in charge of Apple’s day-to-day operations, and he has long been seen as the natural successor. He also served as Apple’s leader for two months in 2004 while Jobs battled cancer and again for five-and-a-half months in 2009 when Jobs received a liver transplant.
