A report from OTR Global which was brought to us by AppleInsider suggests that Apple is planning to manufacture hybrid iPhones which would be compatible with both Verizon’s CDMA2000, and AT&T’s UMTS 3G networks. It goes without saying that current and prior iPhone models only support the UMTS network, which is used by most network providers around the world.
Qualcomm’s new hybrid CDMA/WCDMA chip offers the potential for a single, global iPhone that users can take to any major carrier, solving the network fractionalization problem. It also solves other issues that had served as roadblocks, including the issue of user confusion that would result from Apple selling separate CDMA and GSM/UMTS versions of the iPhone.
This move is expected to to take place in Q3 of 2010, and would allow the iPhone to be used on Verizon’s network, greatly expanding Apple’s mobile phone reach in the US. This coincides with AT&T’s iPhone exclusivity contract expiring in the middle part of 2010.
Lastly, the report claims the new iPhone model may have a smaller screen. All iPhone and iPod touch models ever made have had a 3.5-inch screen, the new iPhone would have a 2.8-inch screen. Yeah, me either.
I call horsefeathers on this rumor. People have complained that the iPhone screen is too small as it is, so why would Apple make it smaller? Also, why would Apple go out of their way to accommodate a network technology that most of the world doesn’t use. For every customer Apple could gain from selling the iPhone through Verizon, Apple can acquire in other markets without changing the network radios currently being used in iPhones. In short, why would Apple increase the cost of manufacturing the device to accommodate a small minority of users in a global market?
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