Another one of predictions for the next iPhone that seems to be coming true, was confirmed by Apple COO Tim Cook yesterday during their quarterly report conference call. The next generation iPhone will not have support for LTE wireless data technology. From Forbes:

“The first generation of LTE chip-sets force a lot of design compromises with the handset, and some of those we are just not willing to make.”

Adding LTE into the next generation iPhone would mean adding more complexity by needing both a 3G and a 4G chip, that would only work on one provider, and require more power. Currently only one LTE mobile phone is on the market right now, the HTC Thunderbolt on Verizon, which has been the only US carrier so far to roll out any LTE service. In addition to lack of real LTE coverage in most of the country, even on Verizon's network, the Thunderbold has been plagued with horrendous battery life. The next iPhone will probably feature HSPA+, as the Qualcomm chip that is making its way into it, supports it already. It just needs to be enabled in the firmware.

During a conference call with investors and the press to discuss quarterly results, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo let loose what most of us already assumed... that the next version of the Apple iPhone will be a 'world phone' meaning one device that is capable of running on both GSM and CDMA networks. From Barron's:

... when a new device from Apple is launched, whenever that may be, and that we will be, on the first time, on equal footing with our competitors on a new phone hitting the market, which will also be a global device.

GSM is the network technology used by AT&T and T-Mobile in the United States and every other mobile provider on the planet that has the iPhone for sale. CDMA is used by Verizon and Sprint in the United States, Bell and Telus in Canada, and a handful of other major providers around the world. Currently, the iPhone 4 is sold in two different flavors, the GSM version and the Verizon specific version. Each version has different radios and internal layouts, and currently run different versions of iOS. A unified phone would allow Apple to engineer one device for every provider on the planet, allowing them to sell the iPhone in more markets on more providers. A unified GSM/CDMA phone was one of my five predictions for the next iPhone. image via iFixit, iPhone 4 teardown

Late winter, early spring... it's that time of year where the entire technology world begins to wonder about what Apple has planned for the next version of the iPhone, which, come late June will be the device that sets the trend for mobile technology into the next year. Like it or hate it, the iPhone is the standard that all Android, WebOS, BlackBerry and Windows Phones must either match or surpass to be taken seriously. So what will this phone feature? It's impossible to tell until Steve Jobs takes the stage to tell us, and even then there will still be many unanswered questions until it gets into the hands of the consumer. Even though the release of the next generation iPhone happens like clock work, I'm still constantly asked questions like "when will the next iPhone be out" or "should I wait to buy it?" -- This article serves to help anwser those questions right now. By the way, if you thought I mistaken when I said Steve Jobs will take the stage, let me clarify:

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httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23r6G9QUV08 Before you join the rush of people who are shedding their AT&T iPhone for the Verizon iPhone (oh wait, no one is actually doing that) you should do some research and see what dumping "the nations largest 3G network" and getting on "America's most reliable network" will get you. Mostly, slower Internet speeds. A lot slower, actually. Well, that, and no simultaneous voice and data network. What you also won't get, as 9to5Mac has pointed out, is the ability to swap between multiple calls. Also, if you're used to having more than a couple person in a conference call, you'll want to stick with AT&T. That is, assuming you can make calls on their network. While your mileage may vary, I'm sticking with AT&T. video and images via Tipb.com

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUaFywhywjA The Apple store at the Mall of America was... uh, not very busy today. Surprising, since today was the first day you could get your Verizon iPhone without being an existing Verizon customer. Verizon set a new record for first day sales of a new product in 2 hours last week, when they sold the device to existing customers. It seems that the predicted flood of AT&T customers isn't happening quite yet. Maybe AT&T in Minneapolis (and the rest of the United States) isn't as bad as everyone in San Fransisco and New York seem to make it out to be? Kinda like I said last month? No, that couldn't be it.

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It may look the same on the outside, but the guts seem to indicate more similarities to the next version than the current.

Amplify’d from arstechnica.com

iFixit has gotten its hands on the CDMA-equipped iPhone 4 and taken it apart to see what Apple has changed from the original GSM-based iPhone 4. Apple has swapped out the original vibrator for a revised "smoother" version, and made changes on the logic board to accommodate a new Qualcomm baseband processor compatible with CDMA networks like Verizon. The most interesting revelation, however, is that the Qualcomm chip that Apple used is capable of both CDMA and GSM communication. Read more at arstechnica.com

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULSUuWlo9Lw Apple makes some beautifully engineered hardware, both on the outside and the inside. But Steve would really prefer you admire the exterior only, and Apple has started putting a special kind of security screw on your phone to keep all the amateurs out. Not content with using your normal torx security screw, Apple has chosen a design that prohibits nearly every single readily available screw bit from being able to turn it. Say hello to the "pentalobe" bit.

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Apple has released the first beta of iOS 4.3 to developers, hot on the heels of the Verizon iPhone announcement. While it's probably too late in the game to expect 4.3 to come on the Verizon iPhone, chances are it'll reach the general public sometime after that. All of the demo phones that the tech press got to play with are running iOS 4.2.5, which is probably going to be a VZW only version, coming all back into sync with the release of 4.3. If Apple could get away without releasing betas of their operating systems, they'd probably do it, because it's the first chance many of us outside of their private layer get to have to look at what's coming down the pipe. What you should know:

• Apple has not seeded an update for the second generation iPhone (3G) or iPod touch. Only the iPhone 3GS and 4, iPad and Apple TV. This could mean one of two things --

1. It's just not out yet. Apple is either lazy or they're going to hold off until the next beta release.
2. There will never be a version released. In which case 4.2.1 will be the end of the line for those devices.

• The Personal Hotspot feature of the Verizon iPhone 4 is integrated into 4.3 for all models including those on AT&T, however it's going to cost you extra on your plan.
• FaceTime has it's own icon.
• iPad users can now get a choice between the physical side switch being a mute switch or an orientation lock. In iOS 3.2, which was iPad only, the switch functioned as an orientation lock. When the code tree was unified under iOS 4.2, it was changed to a mute switch. Users complained (rightfully so) and now Apple is giving people an option. Frankly I prefer it as an orientation lock on the iPad and a mute switch on the iPhone.
• On the iPhone, when in silent mode a text message will generate three quick vibrations and an email will generate one. This allows you to quickly distinguish the difference when it's in your pocket. Personally, I turn email notifications off completely because I get too many.
• There are some new font choices as well as some new multi-touch gestures on the iPad. The gestures seem to enable a lot of functionality that would negate the need for a home button. Perhaps a clue to the future of the iPad 2?
• AirPlay for video in applications is a welcomed addition for AppleTV users. Soon you'll be able to stream just more than the built in videos application. This will open the door for VLC (if it returns to the App Store) and others to enable this functionality.
• There have been reports on Twitter about applications not being allowed to update with the beta installed. While I've not confirmed this myself use caution before trying out the beta on your primary device.

Really, if you're not a developer, or a bleeding edge kind of person, stay away. Honestly, if you're not a developer or testing things for a developer you shouldn't have access to this anyway (why people risk installing operating systems from public torrents is beyond me) -- also, if you're someone who exercises their ability to jailbreak or unlock the phone, don't update, because there is no telling if you'll ever be able to go back to 4.2.1, or if an exploit for 4.3 will even be released.

Somewhere deep in the heart of the AT&T headquarters, their executives are huddled around holding a vigil to mourn the loss of the exclusive US contract. Likewise, Google execs are probably throwing chairs at the wall screaming "I thought we had something special!" No longer a mythical unicorn, the much anticipated Verizon iPhone is now a reality. Available February 3 for existing Verizon customers (props to them for that) and then February 10 for everyone else. The new device is almost exactly like the old one except for some small differences:

• CDMA radio instead of GSM, this also means a slightly altered external antenna design
• Support for Verizon Mobile Hotspot, allowing 5 devices to connect to the iPhone and use Verizon's data service

There are a few of differences with Verizon and AT&T that should be pointed out:

1. Verizon's data network is larger, meaning more bars in more places.
2. AT&T's data network is faster, meaning when you get service you're going to cruise faster.
3. CDMA technology doesn't allow for simultaneous voice and data usage. If you're on a call and want to look up on Google Maps where to meet your friend for lunch? Too bad. Gotta wait for your call to end.

The biggest disappointment, but not unexpected, is that the Verizon iPhone will not support LTE technology, which would have allowed for faster data transfers and simultaneous voice and data. However, given that Verizon's LTE network just started rolling out a few months ago, this isn't surprising that Apple chose not to support it. It would have also required further alterations to the iPhone. The unknown right now is what version of iOS this new CDMA iPhone will run. Will the iOS 4.2.1 guts support it? Will it require a 4.2.2 update? Will we get 4.3? Will the GSM and CDMA phones run the same iOS version? Or will it all be some sort of carrier update that doesn't involve the a new version of iOS? Last, Apple COO Tim Cook left the door wide open to future networks when he said this contract with Verizon is multi-year but non-exclusive. Let the Sprint iPhone discussion commence. (Or T-Mobile, if anyone still cares about them.)

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The boys who cried wolf (AKA The Wall Street Journal, et al) are all indicating that Tuesday will be the announcement of the long awaited iPhone 4 on Verizon. I hope they're finally right. Not because I'm going to switch, no, I'm actually pretty satisfied with my AT&T service, having been a customer for a long while before the launch of the first iPhone. I'll just be glad when the noise makers and complainers can have another option. I hope that Verizon's network works better for them than AT&T (although I kinda also hope it's just as bad) so that they'll shut up. I also look forward to another network getting some of the load so that my service will be even more reliable than it already is. I can't be alone in this thinking, if AT&T's network is so god damn horrible across the entire country as the people in San Fransisco and New York make it out to be, no one would use it. Fact is, myself and millions of other subscribers made the choice to use it long before the iPhone. I even used to live down the street from the world headquarters of Sprint, and still used AT&T because I got better service. I'm not discounting that there are people with horrible AT&T service. I've been places where that is the case, I know people who have this problem on a regular basis. It sucks, but chances are no has one forced you to use an iPhone this whole time. I'll also be glad when this golden phone finally does arrive, so we can stop obsessing about it. The phone will come out, AT&T's subscriber numbers will slightly decrease, Verizon will see an increase, Apple's profits will go up. The sun will still rise in the east and set in the west. Choice is good, but the tech world needs to stop treating this like we're awaiting the second coming of Christ, and treat this like what it is, like what happens all around the world with the iPhone on multiple carriers. The same phone, on another network. (Image credit to Gizmodo, from back in 2005, proof people hated them before the iPhone)