Next Generation iPhone: 7.2Mbit, Video Camera, More?

[iphones4evry1]

If they add a faster chip and more RAM, I will definitely upgrade to the new iPhone. Otherwise, my current 3G phone works great and I will keep it.

Faster chip, more RAM = SOLD !!!

 

[mkoesel]

So whatever they pick, it will be ONE big thing they talk about more than anything else. I'm just guessing, but I think video-recording will be it.

I don't think that video is important enough to be included in the name of the device. I think they'll either keep 3G, or just drop it entirely, or they will add something like "Plus" or "Pro" (probably not those in particular, but something equally non-specfic).

 

[aduzik]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: what the iPhone needs, more than anything else, is more computing power. The most interesting item in this story is the reference to a faster processor. Together with more RAM, this will make the iPhone a more compelling experience than anything else.

Also, more processing might would be absolutely critical for handling video, and so would a 7.2Mbps connection. The way I see it, these three things all go together.

 

[MacOSXAddict]

That is huge news the next generation iPhone may be supporting 7.5Mbps data transfers. I live in Canada and Rogers launched their 3.5G network in December and it would be great to take advantage of it.

 

[cmichaelb]

I thought I remember a front page story from a few days ago stating the current iPhone 3G can only handle 3.6 Mbit/s HSPA?

There was a story about that, here's an excerpt:

Electronista provides more detail on AT&T's plans for faster 3G running at 7.2 Mbps, up from the 3.6 Mbps speed of the current network.

However, the most likely change is the addition of support for speed-doubled 7.2Mbps 3G given both hardware manufacturer and carrier plans. Infineon should have a new 3G chipset starting from mid-year that would support the faster speeds while also improving battery life. At the same time, AT&T has been trialing 7.2Mbps 3G since late 2008 and should roll out the speedier service this year. The provider has stressed that many of its cell towers can be upgraded solely through software rather than new equipment.

Current iPhones are limited in hardware to 3.6Mbps 3G and couldn't themselves be upgraded.

 

[Sky Blue]

... (off topic) and AT&T needs to reduce the fees on the older iPhone monthy data plans. For example, the Gen1 iPhone is much slower and the monthly data fee should be less than the 3G monthly data fee.

original iPhone has always been cheaper.

 

[dewser35]

Agreed. That Marvell PXA168 ARM looks pretty sweet! Of course, I'd like to see a big storage bump, but that is a whole other story...

Seriously, what the hell do you need 32GB of storage for? 16GB gives me all the music I could ever need while traveling, all my pictures that I would want to show someone, all the apps I need and plenty I use SOMETIMES, all of the podcasts I listen to and there is still 3GB left to dump a movie on there when I travel for work.

Sure I have the macbook on business trips also, but really, unless it is only a small difference in price (50 bucks?) It's not worth it... just give me a faster processor/more RAM 16GB model and cut and pa... err... nevermind.

 

[fleshman03]

There was a story about that, here's an excerpt:

That's enough to seal the deal on a new chipset for me.

 

[antel0pe]

I live in Washington, DC. and ride the metro train a lot. Everyone that has t-mobile, verizon, and other services still plug away on their phone with phone calls and text messages. I glance at my iphone and as soon as I walk in through the doors my reception drops.

I'm in the DC area as well. The only carrier that actually has service in the metro is Verizon, but Sprint can roam on there as well. Neither ATT or T-Mobile work at all. This is supposed to change over the next year as WMATA is opening up the metro to service from all major carriers. A quick google search will turn up a wealth of info on this subject.

Please, stop the ridiculous N WiFi rumors.

The current iPhone can't even come close to saturating a G conection. In fact, it can't even saturate a good high-speed home Internet connection.

I have 20mbit/sec (burstable to 25 mbit/sec) service from Cox. I've tested it using SpeedTest from both my PC and my MacBook (forcing connection to the G side of my router), and I am able to attain that speed.

With my iPhone connected through WiFi, the best I've been able to get is 5mbit/sec - on a good day. That's just 1/4 of my Internet connection speed. I've tried it on other's routers and had the same result. As well, other people have reported a similar maximum speed here.

N WiFi is absolutely unnecessary for the iphone. It would be a waste of money and a waste of battery power, and Apple is not that stupid.

Ummmm that isn't the only reason to include N. I'd love it if I could have my iPhones on the same wifi network as the rest of my house, but I can't because they will drag the entire network speed down to 802.11g speeds. I'm currently running two networks in my house to get around this, kind or a PITA. 802.11n is a must for the next iPhone, I don't want to keep running g hardware for no reason.

I'd take 802.11n over video recording any day.

 

[yetanotherdave]

Seriously, what the hell do you need 32GB of storage for? 16GB gives me all the music I could ever need while traveling, all my pictures that I would want to show someone, all the apps I need and plenty I use SOMETIMES, all of the podcasts I listen to and there is still 3GB left to dump a movie on there when I travel for work.

Sure I have the macbook on business trips also, but really, unless it is only a small difference in price (50 bucks?) It's not worth it... just give me a faster processor/more RAM 16GB model and cut and pa... err... nevermind.

Some people have 32Gb+ of songs/podcasts/video. Some people like to carry all their music in their pocket and have ditched their ipod for their phone.
I have 40Gb+ of music, and use smart playlists to manage what's on my phone, but I wish there was more capacity. 16gb is days of music, but when that one track you want isn't on there at the time it's really irritating.

 

[nfl46]

Darn, where's the leak pictures of the new iPhone! I haven't really seen any lately..just the ones posted a whilllle back. I'm ready to speculate on that...lol

 

[skiwhitman]

iPhone3G2G

iPhone 3G2G?

sounds a little like iPhone R2D2 🙄

 

[hugodrax]

Rumor is you will be able to attach a USB powered electric shaver and control the settings via an application and keep track of your shaving history so you can post automatically on twitter every time you shave.

 

[johnnyjibbs]

Although there will be other improvements, I think "video recording" will somehow become the basis for this iPhone's name, just as 3G was the defining characteristic of the last one.

I don't know what they'll call it, but that's the feature they'll show on TV.

Really? Most phones have had that functionality for years. How about iPhone MMS? 😱😛😀

Seriously though, I hope the next iPhone has a lot more than just a few catchup features. I mean, the current iPhone 3G is perfect for my needs right now (and will be even better once I get all the "catchup" features included in 3.0) but I'm looking forward to a faster chip and better screen res.

I'm just not sure what the next revolutionary thing is going to be.

 

[fleshman03]

Seriously, what the hell do you need 32GB of storage for? 16GB gives me all the music I could ever need while traveling, all my pictures that I would want to show someone, all the apps I need and plenty I use SOMETIMES, all of the podcasts I listen to and there is still 3GB left to dump a movie on there when I travel for work.

Sure I have the macbook on business trips also, but really, unless it is only a small difference in price (50 bucks?) It's not worth it... just give me a faster processor/more RAM 16GB model and cut and pa... err... nevermind.

I have a 16gb iPod Touch and:

14.49gb Music
1gb worth of podcasts. (video + speech)
80gb worth of movies


This doesn't take into account the fact that I have an EyeTV and can record some TV shows and watch them on my lunch hour.

I would like to be able to have all my music, some podcasts, maybe a movie or two (I'd really like more, but I'll settle) Apps and pictures.

32 would be nice, 64 is sweet. Obviously my movie and music collection is going to grow in the future...

Currently, I only bring with my about 12gb worth of music, no movies, 2 video podcasts, apps and my pictures.

Factor in the ability to record video and you'll see the need for more storage.

 

[zunairryk]

what about a front camera for video calling 🙁

 

[libertyforall]

This is silly, the 1st Gen. iPhone has a video camera too! Apple just has not released software to use it -- Jailbreak your iPhone, and you will find a few video capture applications -- obviously Apple's idea is planned obsolescence and they won't add all the features people thought they would eventually get with phone hardware that is capable! Greedy corporations as usual...

 

[Village]

If they'd extend the operating time between charges, and of course the 3.0 software changes, that would make me a happy camper! I haven't bought an iPhone yet and have been on the fence. All my friends with 3G phones have to recharge at the end of the day. I don't mind docking it at the end of the evening, but the need for a mid-day charge would get annoying.

 

[chrmjenkins]

This is interesting because details on the Marvell Sheeva chip are scarce. All I know is that it is an ARM licensed core (which apple just did so they can do the cores themselves) and it can run 1+ Ghz. I don't know what functional units it incorporates, what its MIPS are, what process size the chip is, etc. If this is indeed what they use, I'll be interested to get some hard numbers.

Also,

From the product brief PDF

 

[stownsend3]

I'm in agreement with most here, in that if the new iPhone can get me faster internet (w/o much bump in price).... a little larger storage, and the ability to record video (maybe even video call?) would be worth the upgrade from the 3G.

RAM is a big necessity, because I hate having apps crash, and with push finally coming online, that is going to be a drain on the system as well

 

[Roy Hobbs]

Seriously, what the hell do you need 32GB of storage for? 16GB gives me all the music I could ever need while traveling, all my pictures that I would want to show someone, all the apps I need and plenty I use SOMETIMES, all of the podcasts I listen to and there is still 3GB left to dump a movie on there when I travel for work.

Sure I have the macbook on business trips also, but really, unless it is only a small difference in price (50 bucks?) It's not worth it... just give me a faster processor/more RAM 16GB model and cut and pa... err... nevermind.

32 gig would be nice, I would love it if they sprang a 64 gig on us.

 

[Stately]

For me, faster processor and more RAM are paramount. For a lot of people, it's storage and gimmicks (video recording).

If the iPhone has "n" built in for wifi (unlike b/g) then it'll be a few years until I need that so I might skip it.

HSPDA would be something I would buy - more portable internet speed.

Faster processors and RAM are the types of things that are always upgraded, in regards to computers. Hence the term, upgrade . . Video recording is a gimmick? Do you think that having the ability to edit documents, is a gimmick as well? These are SMART devices that are being released, they are meant to do more than one thing. The i phone for example does much more than one thing and very well might I add. If memory and speed are all you need along with regular phone capability there are plenty of other phones out. 😎

 

[Disturbedmaggot]

The current iPhone 3G modem chip IS capable of 7.2 Mbps. It is a category 8 3G radio.

http://www.infineon.com/dgdl/X-GOLD...f0004&fileId=db3a30431936bc4b011957c66fee3850

Read the key modem features list.

 

[fleshman03]

This is interesting because details on the Marvell Sheeva chip are scarce. All I know is that it is an ARM licensed core (which apple just did so they can do the cores themselves) and it can run 1+ Ghz. I don't know what functional units it incorporates, what its MIPS are, what process size the chip is, etc. If this is indeed what they use, I'll be interested to get some hard numbers.

Also,

From the product brief PDF

Just got a woody......

Hulu!!!!!!

Now if only the battery would last longer than a show...

 

[chrmjenkins]

32 gig would be nice, I would love it if they sprang a 64 gig on us.

This was limited by the size of NAND chips they could get. In the iPhone, they can only fit one (as opposed to two in the touch), and the max size is/was 16 GB. If that has been upped to 32, you'll see 32 GB versions. Don't expect 64 GB soon though.