Jeff Rock

No. 5

Here we go again. There’s a rumor circulating that Apple will introduce an iPhone 4S and an iPhone 5 at the Fall music event this year. The iPhone 4 has only been out for 14 months and it’s selling like mad, so to me, the idea that we’re going to get an iPhone 5 so early seems very, very unlikely. But wait! Along comes a rumor with leaked case designs behind it (squeal!) Could it be? Are we going to get two iPhones in one day?

No, I don’t believe so.

To be clear, I believe these case designs are real. And that the device they’re meant to hold is a 5th generation Apple iOS device. Just not a 5th generation iPhone.

John Gruber:

Apple’s music events were about selling music-playing iPods. The iPhone is cannibalizing that business; their whole iPod division is propped up by the Touch, which is really just a phone-less iPhone. I don’t think they’re going to stop selling audio iPods, but everyone knows, including Apple, that neither the news media nor the masses can get it up for “new iPods” any more. New iOS devices are what we can get it up for.

Yes, everyone loves a new iOS device. And what iOS device is in its 4th generation, has gotten a yearly refresh every September and is due for a new model?

iPod touch. Let’s take a look at this artists rendering from Macrumors over a month ago, back when the CAD wireframe leaked.

Image via macrumors.com.

And here’s another render from Case-Mate, who either had some inside info or was so confident in the leaked wireframe that they developed designs around it.

Image via macrumors.com.

Looks impossibly thin, doesn’t it? Thinner than any iPhone has ever been, even without the taper. Sure, it’s grown a mute switch, but it’s not a stretch to think that the iPod touch needs one. It’s a little wider, too. Perfect for long gaming sessions and watching movies on car rides, which is exactly what the touch is marketed toward. It looks exactly like you would expect the next touch to look: like a design evolution that brings it into line with the ‘taper’ design language that Apple has been shipping for the past year.

Swipe

There is one thing that bothers me though. There seems to be a wider area where the home button lives. It’s rumored that this a a swipeable area that allows for fast app switching without the (terrible) double-click we’re used to. Why would this come to the touch first? Well, who says it’s not coming to both? We haven’t seen any verified 4S front panel leaks (to my knowledge) so it’s entirely possible that both the 4S and the touch will get larger screens and a swipeable home button.

Or, I could be wrong. Hopefully we’ll find out in about two weeks.