with two generations of iphone complete, what will iphone 3rd generation include? what will it look like? better fingerprint proof plastic? video camera? is a 3rd generation iphone less than a year away or will apple wait until 2010 to launch ? any ideas?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iphone 3rd generation less than a year away?
- Thread starter mac_da_mike
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I think there will be a bit longer than a year before we see another one, if only because AT&T's got everyone under 2-year subsidized contracts. Doubtful they'll let everyone out for an upgrade price a year early.
At least one more release before AT&T's exclusivity is up though.
At least one more release before AT&T's exclusivity is up though.
Everytime something comes out, someone always asks"whens the next release?" Just be content with the current iphone out and go with it until next year.
please, i am very grateful for the first two generations of iphone. just wanted to get an idea of what's around the bend, maybe some good ideas/improvements posted in this thread will find their way into the next gen iphone.
iPhone 3rd Generation in January
A friend of mine who works for Apple gave me the scoop on the iPhone 3G about 1 1/2 months before SJ announced it. He was correct in telling me about the current release specs. He tells me now that there will most likely be a new iPhone released (announced) at Macworld in January. He claims that the January releases will be the major upgrade with the July update being incremental. He also told me that from now on, I should get on the January release cycle, not the July cycle.
Allegedly, SJ wanted this most recent update to be a much more major one, but logistics wouldn't allow. Therefore Apple slapped a couple of new chips in the old motherboard and, viola, iPhone 3G. This was just to satisfy the immediate needs for an iPhone with 3G technology.
The January update will be a completely redesigned motherboard that will integrate much more technology, even more efficiently. THIS is the one that most likely will have the front facing camera for video-conferencing, etc. Unfortunately, those of us like me who just upgraded to iPhone 3G may not be eligible for the subsidized pricing at that point. I will upgrade to this one anyway and stick to the January cycle from there on out.
A friend of mine who works for Apple gave me the scoop on the iPhone 3G about 1 1/2 months before SJ announced it. He was correct in telling me about the current release specs. He tells me now that there will most likely be a new iPhone released (announced) at Macworld in January. He claims that the January releases will be the major upgrade with the July update being incremental. He also told me that from now on, I should get on the January release cycle, not the July cycle.
Allegedly, SJ wanted this most recent update to be a much more major one, but logistics wouldn't allow. Therefore Apple slapped a couple of new chips in the old motherboard and, viola, iPhone 3G. This was just to satisfy the immediate needs for an iPhone with 3G technology.
The January update will be a completely redesigned motherboard that will integrate much more technology, even more efficiently. THIS is the one that most likely will have the front facing camera for video-conferencing, etc. Unfortunately, those of us like me who just upgraded to iPhone 3G may not be eligible for the subsidized pricing at that point. I will upgrade to this one anyway and stick to the January cycle from there on out.
Hope that's true (though, no offense, i've never took much stock in friend-of-a-friend-of-a-cousin-type rumors). That would make me even happier that I choose not to upgrade to the 3G
I am highly skeptical any of this is true. Apple has positioned and marketed 7/11 update as a major milestone. It will be very unlikely for them to introduce another major release within less than 6 months. Especially without an easy upgrade path for current 3G owners, they'd be tremendously limiting their target market.
Sorry to say, but major upgrade in 6 months ain't happening. I'd predict something along the lines of ~18 months from now, where AT&T will be much more willing to let people re-up their contracts and upgrade to new subsidised iPhone.
I hope it's not true. I'm still trying to get the iPhone 3G and would hate to use my subsidized price now only to pay a larger price in January.
And I think that's the very reason it's not possible; Jobs would piss off lots of people. It would be like lowering price of a highly coveted gadget months after the initial launch.
I'm Skeptical as well
I am skeptical as well. The only reason that I posted this on a forum on Mac Rumors is that he was dead-on about the iPhone 3G only being upgraded with a new 3G radio and a GPS chip on the same original motherboard.
It is only a rumor, no more and no less. Time will tell if my friend is correct about January.
I am skeptical as well. The only reason that I posted this on a forum on Mac Rumors is that he was dead-on about the iPhone 3G only being upgraded with a new 3G radio and a GPS chip on the same original motherboard.
It is only a rumor, no more and no less. Time will tell if my friend is correct about January.
So is the rumor that this architecture overhaul will be announced AND released in January?
We will see more software updates in January.
I can say now that i'm 95% sure we are going to see a new iPhone every single year in the June / July time frame. The next iPhone will be an unsubsidized price though, so i expect to see a lot more hardware features, as we will be paying for the phone up front, of about $400-$500
I can say now that i'm 95% sure we are going to see a new iPhone every single year in the June / July time frame. The next iPhone will be an unsubsidized price though, so i expect to see a lot more hardware features, as we will be paying for the phone up front, of about $400-$500
I wouldn't go that far... release seems to be after the announcement in recent times.
Please let them release the next one with a couple of gaming buttons on one side and a d-pad on the other... It would make such an excellent gaming platform and is so severely limited with only having touch screen input. Most of the gaming tat around for it at the moment is so unplayable for anything more than passing some time while you're waiting for a takeaway. Yet I can find myself being absorbed for hours on end playing games on my DS...
Pobster
Pobster
All of the 3G users may not qualify for a subsidy on the iPhone of Summer 2009, but I see no reason that the subsidy would go away altogether as you state. Whether the subsidized (and unsubsidized) prices go up very TBD, but early results suggest that the $199 price point was a wise move and jacking the price back up several hundered dollars would not be so wise.
If this to be the case, it will most likely be an announcement only and the release will be in July (just like the original iPhone... Macworld announcement, July Release)