Apple is rumored to be working on the next generation iPhone, currently being called the “iPhone 5S”. According to Jeffries analyst Peter Misek, Apple is now testing two prototypes of the next gen iPhone, and will start initial builds in March in order for a early release date in June or July. Since the iPhone 4S, Apple has been releasing iPhones in the Fall, alongside or close to the iPod refresh. Now, with rumors that the Cupertino company is creating a ‘cheaper’ iPhone for emerging markets, Apple is expected to move up the iPhone debut to the June/July timeframe in order to release the new device in the Fall.

Misek claims that the iPhone to be released in June will be only an incremental upgrade, likely internal changes such as a faster A6X chip, and better cameras and that an entirely new design with a larger 4.8” screen will be seen with the next generation iPhone 6. As noted, the cheaper iPhone will likely be a more concentrated device, such as the iPad mini, which isn’t built of cheaper materials, but rather of a smaller size.

As expected, Misek believes that with reports of a “iPhone 5S” on the horizon, sales of the current iPhone 5 would slow, although he also predicts that Apple will sell 44 million iPhones in the March quarter. He also pinpointed some reasons as to why a decrease in iPhone 5 part orders does not necessarily mean a decline in demand for the product.

– An assembly bottleneck that caused component inventories to rise in the holiday quarter.
– Planning for preliminary production of the next iPhone in March.
– Demand may be either in line or “slightly below optimistic expectations

It seems that Apple will likely keep its iPhone line consistent and in line with Misek’s claims. Since the iPhone 3G, the company has always followed with an ‘S’ version, with the letter signifying a new feature. In the iPhone 3GS, it was Speed; the iPhone 4S was Siri, and the 5S will likely signify a newer feature.

{Via AppleInsider}

On Thursday, a report from The Houston Chronicle noted that Apple’s Highland Village retail store will be opening on Friday, March 16. The store was originally scheduled to open on Saturday, March 17th, but was mysteriously bumped back a day to the Friday. This has lead to speculation that Apple is looking to have the store open for iPad 3 release date.

Apple’s iPad 3 keynote event is scheduled for March 7th, and will likely release the third-gen iPad in the following week as the company did with the iPad 2. In order to accommodate the long lines and large influx of customers, Apple’s new Highland Village Store will allow for better management of iPad 3 distribution and less traffic in Apple’s seven other retail locations in Houston.

The store, located in the Highland Village Shopping center at Westheimer and Drexel , was originally supposed to open in January, according to the source, but was delayed. March 17 was originally set as the new opening date, but the source said it was moved to the 16th a few weeks ago.

Apple’s Grand Openings typically take place on Saturdays, but may be moved to other days of the week to recognize special events or announcements. The March 16th opening would allow Apple exactly nine days following the announcement to ship the iPad 3’s to retail stores across the U.S.

Apple has does this in the past with the iPad 2, releasing the device on March 2nd and releasing it in stores at 5:00PM local time on March 11th. The Highland Village store is one of the few stores to adopt the same prototype design of the Upper West Side store in New York City. The Highland Village store is going to have the same glass-roof, front and back entrances, and tall brick wall above the glass. The store will be the first of Houston’s seven retail stores to be located outside of a shopping mall.

When Apple announced iPad 2 they called 2011 the “year of iPad 2″ and now the company is all set to repeat its breakthrough success in the tablet market with the introduction of iPad 3. According to reports published by WSJ and iMore iPad 3 release date is expected to be announced on March 7th.

Various leaks, rumors and analysts reports we’ve covered in the past suggest that Apple’s next gen iPad 3 would feature retina display, upgraded processor and there’s also a possibility of 4G LTE networking.

4G LTE networking has been another mystery surrounding the iPad 3, with a compatible Qualcomm chipset becoming available, but international LTE coverage is still slim, and in some cases a year or more away. It sounds like Apple has 4G LTE lined up for iPhone 5 this October, but we’re still not certain if the iPad 3 will get it earlier.

Jim Dalrymple of LoopInsight also seems to agree with the release date announcement of iPad 3 being March 7th. He is known to have reported or confirmed Apple rumors with a very good track  record. The report published by WSJ also pointed to an early March launch event.

LTE rollout has been very slow and while Apple has been rumored to include faster networking in their future products iPad 3 could possibly be Apple’s first iOS device to support LTE. The Cupertino-based company has been testing LTE in iOS 5 as it was revealed in an “internal iOS test build” of one of Apple’s major mobile partners.

Are you excited about iPad 3 launch event? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

On Tuesday, Japanese site Macotakara reported that Apple is planning to hold an iPad event in early February to announce the iPad 3, which is expected to arrive with iOS 5.1. The website pointed out that they had an Asian supplier and a source in the U.S who could confirm these rumors.

Although the iPad 3 is expected to be announced in February, other rumors suggest that the iPad 3 will actually be released in March, the same as the iPad 2 which arrived on March 11. This long delay could be in part because of the Chinese New Year which is going to be celebrated from January 23 to the 28th.

Foxconn and Pegatron, two of Apple’s main suppliers are expected to start shipping the device to the Apple Stores in early March, likely for a mid-March release. The iPad 3 has long been rumored to include a higher resolution display, as well as the introduction of the A6 chip and better 2 megapixel camera, up from 0.9 megapixels.

Macotakara has a mixed track record with the release of Apple products, correctly reporting on Apple’s iPad 2 and iPhone 4S but incorrectly suggesting that Apple would be releasing a Macbook Air with high-speed 400MBps flash memory and that a fifth-generation iPhone would feature an aluminum back.

If the event is scheduled for February we can expect media invites to be sent out in the first week of the next month. It will be interesting to see if Apple will finally bring the retina display to the iPad, which will certainly make the poplar tablet worth an upgrade for many users.

{via AppleInsider}

Apple on Wednesday announced that they are planning to rollout the iPhone 4S to 22 countries around the world on Friday, January 13th with China as the featured addition for the debut. The Cupertino based company has been experiencing heavy adoption rate and positive sales in China and other countries in Asia.

Customer response to our products in China has been off the charts,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “With the launch in China next week, iPhone 4S will be available in over 90 countries making this our fastest iPhone rollout ever.

The iPhone 4S currently operates on China Unicom in China, however, Apple has not specified whether they will be adding any new carriers to the iPhone 4 and 4S. In big markets, such as the US, Apple is constantly looking to expand to more networks. Currently, China has only one carrier for iPhone 4S.

Alongside China, Apple is also rolling out the iPhone 4S in 21 new countries, including: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, China, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Guam, Guinea Conakry, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Niger, Senegal, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos and Uganda.

{via MacRumors}

A comment made on Best Buy’s Canadian website by one of its employees has confirmed that the retailer is set to bring Apple’s iPad 2 to its Canadian stores on Friday, March 25th at 10am. The site admin – who has been confirmed as a Best Buy employee – warned that there would be no pre-orders, and that devices would be sold on a first come, first served basis:

Was confirmed by my store manager. We will be selling them at 10am Friday when we open. It’s first come first serve and there WILL be a line up. If we are doing the same thing as last year we will be handing out a piece of paper which you will fill out telling us which ipad you want, size, color ect..

Unsurprisingly, the employee also warns that there will be lines, and that a ticket system would be exercised during the launch to sort through orders. However, Canadians should take some comfort from the experience Best Buy has gained from its U.S. launch, where customers waited in lines for hours just to be told that the few iPad 2s the retailer did have in stock had sold out. It’s believed that Best Buy’s iPad 2 launch in Canada will go much more smoothly.

There’s currently no word on how many devices customers will be able to buy from Canadian Best Buy stores, however, it’s expected customers will be limited to two devices each the same as those in the U.S

As for the iPad 2 launch elsewhere in the world, there’s no news of delays, so launches internationally should go ahead as planned. A report from TechRadar, which quotes an Apple spokesperson, confirms that the device is still planned for a U.K. launch on March 25th.

Apple today announced that Verizon’s existing 94 million customers will get an exclusive opportunity to pre-order the iPhone 4 on February 03 at 3 AM. You will be able to pre-order Verizon iPhone 4 through Apple’s online store and from Verizon’s website.

Apple and Verizon Wireless expect huge demand and will fulfill the orders on a first come, first served basis. There is no doubt that there will be many Verizon customers who have waited for this day since the original iPhone and now they can finally buy Apple’s new CDMA smartphone. On February 10th AT&T’s iPhone exclusivity deal will finally come to an end and it would be interesting to see if the sales figures encourage Apple to make iPhone available on other networks too (Sprint?).

The general sales for qualified customers will begin at 7 AM on February 10th, but you will also be able to order an iPhone 4 on Verizon for delivery or reserve for in-store pick up beginning February 09. In addition to the online stores iPhone 4 will be available at Apple’s retail stores and Verizon Wireless Communication Stores.

iPhone 4 on Verizon is priced at $199 for 16GB model and $299 for 32GB model with a new two year contract. We highly recommend that you pre-order or reserve your iPhone as these may soon be out of stock due to high demand.

Press Release

iPhone 4 on Verizon Wireless Available for Pre-Order Tomorrow

CUPERTINO, California-February 2, 2011-Apple® today announced an exclusive opportunity for Verizon Wireless’ 94 million customers to pre-order iPhone® 4 online beginning on Thursday, February 3 through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com) and at www.verizonwireless.com/iphone. Due to high demand, customer orders will be fulfilled on a first come, first served basis.

Beginning on Wednesday, February 9, all qualified customers will be able to order an iPhone 4 on Verizon through the Apple Store (www.apple.com) for delivery or reserve for in-store pick up beginning February 10.

Beginning at 7 a.m. local time on Thursday, February 10, iPhone 4 on Verizon will be available to all qualified customers at Apple’s retail stores. iPhone 4 will also be available at more than 2,000 Verizon Wireless Communication Stores nationwide.

iPhone 4 is the most innovative phone in the world, featuring Apple’s stunning Retina™ display, the highest resolution display ever built into a phone resulting in super crisp text, images and video, and FaceTime®, which makes video calling a reality. iPhone 4 also features a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, HD video recording, Apple’s A4 chip and a beautiful glass and stainless steel design like no other mobile phone. Verizon Wireless customers will also enjoy new Personal Hotspot capabilities allowing them to use iPhone 4 to connect up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices.

Pricing & Availability
iPhone 4 on the Verizon Wireless network will be available for a suggested retail price of $199 for the 16GB model and $299 for the 32GB model with a new two year agreement. iPhone 4 will be available through the Apple Store (www.apple.com), at Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. iPhone 4 will also be available at more than 2,000 Verizon Wireless Communication Stores nationwide, online at www.verizonwireless.com/iphone, select retail partners, and by calling 1-800-2 JOIN IN.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.