That information comes courtesy of AllThingsD, which relied on unnamed “sources close to the information” for the exact date. For some time, rumors have circulated that Apple plans to unveil the device—popularly dubbed the “iPhone 5”—in October.

There are also a number of publications, including The Next Web, reporting that former vice president Al Gore, a member of Apple’s board of directors, told a conference audience that “new iPhones are coming out next month.”

Gore’s comments dovetail with still another rumor that Apple plans on releasing a line of lower-cost iPhones to complement the iPhone 5, with an eye toward combating midmarket Android devices.

Rumors suggest that the iPhone 5 will offer an 8-megapixel camera and an A5 dual-core processor, along with some deviation from the design template established by the iPhone 4. A Sept. 15 article in The New York Times supported those assertions, while offering that the iPhone 5’s unveiling is “just weeks away.”

The new iPhone could also make an appearance on Sprint in the United States. Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has estimated that giving Sprint the iPhone would boost the device’s overall sales by 6 million units. A Sprint iPhone would also leave T-Mobile as the only U.S. carrier without an Apple phone in its device portfolio, although the latter’s parent company, Deutsche Telekom AG, has offered the iPhone for years in Germany (and is allowing customers to preorder the iPhone 5, although without any mention of a release date or device specs).

Apple’s iPhone 5 won’t be offered on T-Mobile this year, according to a leaked internal document purportedly from the carrier’s chief marketing officer.

“We are not going to get the iPhone 5 this year,” CMO Cole Brodman is quoted as saying in a transcript of a company town hall meeting, itself reported on the blog TmoNews (which bills itself as “The Unofficial T-Mobile Blog”). The posting was quickly picked up by other blogs, including the Apple-centric 9to5Mac.

If T-Mobile ends up acquired by AT&T, its customers could inherit the ability to purchase the iPhone—but federal regulators seem intent on denying that acquisition. That would leave T-Mobile with the sole option of negotiating directly with Apple to carry the iPhone, a deal that would almost certainly evolve on Apple’s terms.

Source: eWeek

Foxconn, the Chinese firm responsible for manufacturing the iPhone 5, is ramping up product before the rumoured October launch date.

According to DigiTimes, suppliers have ramped up production with 150,000 units being pumped out per day.

Suppliers in the iPhone 5 supply chain in Taiwan have geared up production recently with volume shipments of the new Apple smartphones to begin soon. Production of iPhone 5s at OEM maker Foxconn Electronics has reportedly reached 150,000 units per day, according to industry sources.

Lens maker Largan Precision, touch panel maker TPK Holding, reinforced glass supplier G-Tech Optoelectronics and battery vendors Simplo and Dynapack are all operating at full swing currently, the sources indicated.

Shipments of iPhone 5 from the supply chain are expected to reach 5-6 million in September and top over 22 million units in the fourth quarter as suppliers will ship less iPhone 4 and CDMA-version iPhones during the final quarter of the year, noted the sources.

Although Pegatron Technology has reportedly landed about 15% of iPhone 5 orders from Apple, the company may not begin shipping until 2012, the sources commented.

Shipments are rumoured to hit between five and six million units in September, reaching 22 million in total during the fourth quarter.

iPhone 5 Rumors – August 1, The latest report, from All Things D, claims the next-generation Apple smartphone will make its debut in October, not September.

“So those rumors claiming the iPhone 5 will debut in late September? They’re wrong,” writes ATD’s John Paczkowski.

Late last month, reports emerged about AT&T employees being banned from taking time off during the last two weeks of September, which some took to mean that the carrier would need all hands on deck for the iPhone 5 release. ATD, however, said those reports are “misinformed.”

Citing a source with “knowledge of the situation,” Paczkowski reports that the iPhone 5 will instead be unveiled in October, with other sources putting the launch date late in the month.

Like any other major Apple release, rumors have been swirling for months, with the latest report putting the iPhone 5 release date on September 5. Other rumors about the fabled device: fully integrated voice control; a “baby iPhone” for emerging markets; a “radical” new shape; an iPod-like curved glass display; an edge-to-edge screen; and more.

PCMag mobile analyst Sascha Segan isn’t placing any iPhone 5 bets; he recently begged us all to Stop the iPhone 5 Rumors Insanity.

When the iPhone 5 does hit store shelves, it is likely to be popular, according to a recent survey. PriceGrabber found that 35 percent of U.S. consumers plan to buy the device, while 50 percent plan to do so within a year of its release.

Source: Albanesius C. 2011. Latest iPhone 5 Rumors Tips October Release Date. PCMag.com

So does that mean the iPhone is more important to Apple than the iPad? Not necessarily. It just means that when the iPad 3 arrives, it’ll be inheriting ninety-something percent marketshare of a still-small market from its predecessor the iPad 2 and will still be so ahead of the sales curve that most would-be tablet buyers are making a decision between the iPad and no tablet at all, not between the iPad and some competing tablet. That stands in sharp contrast with the hole Apple has dug itself through the first four years of the iPhone era – and nearly all of it springs from three capital letters and an ampersand…

Having the original iPhone available on AT&T? Good. Having it only available on AT&T? Not so much. Not only did Apple learn the hard way that folks on Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile (and other carriers shut our in other nations as part of Apple’s one-carrier-per-nation approach) were more keen to stick with their preferred carrier and settle for whichever Brand B smartphone was sold to them than to jump ship to AT&T for the iPhone they wanted, Apple also unwittingly created a vacuum by which a middling jalopy of a mobile operating system like Android could gobble up the customers which Apple passed on by tying the iPhone to AT&T. Now these folks are using an Android which they have no real interest in staying with (unless they’re the kind of hardcore technology geek which the Linux-based Android was designed for), and Apple must find a way to light a fire under them in order to get them to move to the iPhone 5. And Apple has lined up a number of ducks in order to make that happen with the iPhone 5 launch. But does this sound to you like the kind of launch which should be co-headlined with another major product launch such as the iPad 3 or iPad HD?

Apple has recruited Verizon for the iPhone 5 launch after having soft-launched a Verizon iPhone 4 a few months ago which has already accounted for about a third of all iPhone 4 sales going back to the device’s launch last summer. That tells you the kind of momentum the iPhone already has on Verizon, and just how overwhelmingly popular the Verizon iPhone 5 will be. There’s also talk that the iPhone 5 could expand to the other long-shunned carriers. Apple is also set to navigate the tricky 4G and 4G LTE waters with the iPhone 5 one way or the other, and must use the device’s launch date as a platform for explaining directly to the mainstream public why it is – or isn’t – going the 4G route with the iPhone 5. After that, the carriers’ voices will take over, and they’re each bent on pushing 4G as the great new thing while expecting hardware manufacturers to have to explain to customers why 4G LTE exists almost nowhere and why the other 4G offerings out there are nearly as slow as 3G. Again, not a time when Steve Jobs wants to be pulling the iPad 3 out of his other pocket and trying to sell the world on its features as well.

Apple holds its dedicated press events in order to get its message directly to the general public via live streams and the reporting of legitimately mainstream (read: non-geek) publications, without having to pass through the warped filter of technology geeks who control the headlines of most tech-specific publications and just happen to despise Apple for catering to the mainstream instead of pandering to geek preferences with its products. Holding iPhone 5 and iPad 3 events in separate months (or separate years, if the iPad 3 really is to be a 2012 product) allows Apple to deliver its message directly to the people and dominate the mainstream tech headlines for a day. After that, it’s up to the carriers to mangle that message and the geeks to twist into some kind of anti-Apple fantasy. Apple gets one shot at launching the iPhone 5 in this manner, and should know better than to muddle its one shot at a crystal clear message by attempting to cram two major product launches into the same headline cycle. Here’s more on the iPhone 5.

The security flaw in Apple’s iOS operating system came to light on Wednesday as the website www.jailbreakme.com released code that Apple customers can use to modify the iOS operating system through a process known as “jail breaking.”

Some Apple customers choose to jail break their devices so they can download and run applications that are not approved by Apple or use iPhone phones on networks of carriers that are not approved by Apple.

Security experts warned that criminal hackers could download that code, reverse engineer it to identify a hole in iOS security and build a piece of malicious software within a few days.

“If you are a malicious attacker, it is fairly doable,” said Patrik Runald, a senior researcher with the Internet security firm Websense.

Apple has yet to release an update to iOS that protects customers against malicious software that exploits the flaw.

Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller said the company was aware of the problem.

“We are developing a fix that will be available to customers in an upcoming software update,” Muller said.

Apple has long been vocal against jail breaking, which if done voids the warranty on its devices.

Any security flaw in iOS software — which runs Apple’s iPhone, iPad tablet and iPod Touch — has the potential to affect millions of devices that are at the core of Apple’s business.

Apple has sold 25 million iPads since it launched last year. The company sold over 18 million of its popular iPhones in just the first three months of the year.

Hackers can exploit the iOS vulnerability by creating a malicious PDF document file. It would infect Apple devices when users attempt to open that document, according to Runald.

Once the device is infected, hackers could “do anything they want,” Runald said. That includes stealing passwords, documents and emails.

Comex, a 19-year-old hacker from New York State who developed the jail-breaking tool, said that Apple might be able to patch the software before criminal hackers develop software that exploits the bug.

Last time he put out a version of his jailbreaking software, Apple was able to issue a patch before anybody exploited the bug for malicious purposes.

He said that Apple might not be able to move quickly enough this time.

“It’s not that hard to reverse engineer,” he said via telephone. (Reporting by Jim Finkle, additional reporting by Poornima Gupta; Editing by Bernard Orr)

It’s no secret that smartphones cost an arm and a leg, especially for consumers in the unsubsidized market. Moreover, those looking for a pre-paid smartphone solution don’t have a viable option, yet. In a note sent out to clients this morning, Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore states “It’s time for a mid-range iPhone”. Whitmore notes that there is a potential market of 1.5 billion mobile phone customers worldwide and Apple only claims about 6% of it so far (about 87 million devices). Of these 1.5 billion customers, roughly two thirds of those are pre-paid users! Apple’s iPhone is designed for mass market adoption, so what is holding the product back from reaching more of these billions of customers? The price.

2011 marks the first year where Apple didn’t launch a new iPhone exactly a year after its’ predecessor. As a result, analysts believe the Cupertino tech giant is preparing to make big changes to their product line. This year Apple is expected to reveal two new iPhone models: a low-end model for the pre-paid market (let us call it the iPhone 4S), and a high end model to succeed the iPhone 4 (we will call this the iPhone 5). The iPhone 4S will be Apple’s new pre-paid solution and will probably be similar to the iPhone 4 in terms of the overall design and the hardware components used. The iPhone 5 will be a huge generational leap forward (much like the iPhone 4 to the 3GS) with a radical new design and more powerful hardware.

The prospect that Apple may unveil a cheap iPhone may sound out of the ordinary for the company. Apple has consistently delivered high priced premium quality products and a pre-paid iPhone could possibly tarnish that reputation. However, we have to remember that Apple has never dominated a market as strongly as they currently do. If they want to take their market growth to the next level they have to offer mid-range/low-range solutions. China has a market of around 700 million customers and a majority of these customers are not willing to pay the premium price for an iPhone (along with data plans as well).

The current unlocked iPhone 4 models are sold at a staring price of $649 and are estimated to have a manufacturing margin of 70%. Whitmore suggests Apple will price this pre-paid iPhone 4S model in the $300-$500 range, which would undoubtedly generate less revenue than the iPhone 4. However, if Apple simply manufactured an iPod Touch will cellular hardware inside, analysts estimate they could still generate 53% revenue margins on the product.

While most have resorted to looking for scoops via industry insiders and those sources “close to Apple”, Samsung has taken a different path. The Korean manufacturer has requested the court to ask Apple to hand over the iPad 3 and iPhone 5 so that they can see they may not be infringing on the Cupertino based company’s designs.

This comes after Apple had accused Samsung of copying their current generation iPad 2 and iPhone 4 for their Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Samsung Galaxy S2. As such, Samsung was ordered to hand over to Apple a couple of their upcoming products so Apple’s lawyers can confirm if Samsung’s next line of products are continuing with the same trend. As such, Samsung has requested Apple do the same.

According to The Inquirer, “Apple has responded to this request by calling Samsung’s request “misconceived”, “simplistic” and “unavailing”. It said that its claim that Samsung infringed its patents relates to current products, not future products, and that seeing those future products could have no relevance to Samsung’s defence.”

The unlocked GSM iPhone 4 is available from its U.S. web store for $649 (16GB) and $749 (32GB), adding the United States to the moderately long list of countries selling Apple’s latest smartphone without a built-in carrier partnership.

An unlocked phone is sold as a standalone piece of hardware without any commitments to — or subsidies from — any single mobile network, and it is ideally suited for users who travel internationally and swap out the phone’s SIM cards to get a local rate for communications. But it’s also beneficial for users who want the most coverage for their device. For example, if the user moves into an area with no coverage from one carrier, he can switch out the SIM and replace it with one from a carrier that does have coverage in that area.

iPhone 4

Of course, the two of the big four networks the GSM iPhone 4 is compatible with in the United States are AT&T and T-Mobile, and even then, T-Mobile is only 2G compatible. Then there is the SIM card problem, here and abroad. Apple’s smartphone uses a micro-SIM card, which still isn’t fairly common around the globe.

That makes unlocked iPhone 4 a tough sell here. Right now, someone buying the smartphone for the subsidized price would pay $199 or $299, for the 16GB or 32GB model, respectively. Under 24-month contract and for $25 per month data fee that’s another $600 or $799 and $899, respectively. Someone buying the unlocked phone would pay $1,249 or $1,349 when adding data for same timeframe.

However, U.S. buyers wanting iPhone 4 now and option to upgrade to iPhone 5 in a few months could pay more now, upgrade for lower subsidized price later and resell the older phone one eBay — quite possibly recovering most of their investment.

That circles back to grey market sales. International resellers will pay more per phone but presumably have freedom to buy more of them. AT&T charges $325 to break a contract. That makes the cost of iPhone for resale $524 or $624, depending on model — a $125 price increase easily recovered on the grey market. For example, just across the border in Mexico, it’s not unusual for iPhone to sell for $800 or more. Grey marketers may make a little less per phone but could sell more of them, easily.

Finally, after months and months of waiting, speculating and even doubting, the white Apple iPhone 4 has finally arrived. Yes, that rare white iPhone has been officially announced by Apple and will be made available in the US as well as all over the world beginning today, April 28. So all Apple iPhone enthusiasts, prepare to line up once again into Apple stores and authorized resellers to get your own white iPhone 4.

It is quite perplexing just how a gadget of a certain color can capture all the attention and can be so eagerly awaited. But then, you may not be an avid enthusiast of all things Apple if you can’t understand this. Although there have been white Apple iPhone 4 versions that have come out since the demand for this rare device were going up, they were not the legitimate version, or one that Apple itself has approved. The new white Apple iPhone 4 is expected to come in 16GB and 32GB models with prices at US$199 and US$299, respectively.