And you thought iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 were code-names for exactly the same thing, a fifth-generation iPhone… Taking the rumor mill reporting to the next level, Katy Huberty with Morgan Stanley is calling for a late September launch of the next-generation iPhone, with production kicking off in August. So far so good: The time-frame jibes with various tidbits we’ve been hearing from Asian component suppliers for some time.
But check this out: It’ll be two phones, speculates Deutsche Bank’s Chris Whitmore in a note to clients this morning. One will be a modest upgrade sold contract-free and unlocked at aggressive price points, the iPhone 4S, and the other is a substantial, superphone upgrade, presumably to be named the iPhone 5. Whitmores rationale:
With Nokia and RIMM struggling, the time is right for Apple to aggressively penetrate the mid range smart-phone market (i.e. $300-500 category) to dramatically expand its [total addressable market] and market share.
One problem: The $349 price point Whitmore mentioned for the iPhone 4S ain’t exactly what we’d call inexpensive, especially compared to the sub-$200 Android cheapos, like the $150 Huawei Ascend contract-free smartphone.
(http://9to5mac.com)
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