Hasta La Gadget!

This month, the Apple rumor volcano erupted with purported details of the next-generation iPhone. Various blogs claim receiving tips from informed sources about features in the highly anticipated handset, such as a magnetometer (digital compass), a video camera and a speedier processor.

Here, we round up every rumor that’s appeared about Apple’s next iPhone, which many are betting will be announced June 8 at the Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco. We’re also accompanying each rumor with a percentage rating for its probability to be true, as well as our analysis.

When WWDC arrives, we’ll present a report card showing which publications were correct and which were wrong. And of course, we’ll grade ourselves on our predictions, too.

With that said, here’s everything we’ve heard about the next iPhone:

Speedier processor and more RAM
Source: Daring Fireball; Apple iPhone Apps; MacRumors; WeiPhone
Probability: 95%
This is pretty obvious: Any hardware upgrade typically receives a performance boost. Daring Fireball’s John Gruber has historically been one of the most accurate with Apple rumors, and his sources tell him the next iPhone will have a 600MHz processor (up from 400MHz). That would make the next iPhone 1.5 times as fast as the current one. Also, a recent job listing reveals that Apple is hiring a low-level iPhone programmer who is familiar with the ARMv7 Cortex mobile processor, which is much faster than the current iPhone’s ARMv6-based chip. As for memory, we’d expect Apple to increase RAM to complement the processor upgrade.

Magnetometer (digital compass)
Source: The Boy Genius Report; Daring Fireball; WeiPhone
Probability: 90%
A large amount of evidence indicates that the next iPhone will feature a magnetometer, a 3-axis compass that will greatly enhance its global positioning capabilities. Developers testing the iPhone 3.0 beta have found system files and screenshots referring to a magnetometer, which suggests the hardware feature will appear in the next iPhone.

Same industrial design as previous models
Source: WeiPhone; Daring Fireball
Probability: 90%
All the probable rumors suggest this will be an incremental upgrade, so we would not expect Apple to change much in the industrial design. That would mean the screen resolution should remain the same. Also, Apple would hesitate to change much about the overall form factor, as it would require iPhone application developers to dramatically change their apps just for the new phone.

Storage options increased: 16GB and 32GB
Source: Daring Fireball; Apple iPhone Apps
Probability: 80%
The current iPhones come in two models: 8GB and 16GB. Upping the storage to 16GB and 32GB is a small, incremental upgrade, which would allow Apple to maintain the price points for the handset.

$200 and $300 price points to be maintained
Source: Daring Fireball; Apple iPhone Apps
Probability: 75%
Apple’s iPhone 3G was a tremendous success, selling over 10 million units in 2008. Apple relies on hardware upgrades to boost sales numbers, and given the solid performance of the previous iPhone, the company has no strong incentive to reduce the handset’s costs.

Video-recording and editing capabilities
Source: Engadget; MacRumors; BusinessWeek
Probability: 70%
Some developers have published screen captures of a video interface discovered in iPhone 3.0 beta. A major complaint about the current iPhone is its inability to record video, so it would be surprising if Apple didn’t deliver this feature. We would give this rumor a higher rating if there were evidence of video-editing capabilities. Currently, we haven’t seen any.

Sleeker design
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
Probability: 60%
No solid evidence of this, but the traditional evolution of Apple products is they get slimmer and sleeker.

1.5 times the battery life of the current models
Probability: 60%
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
A major complaint about the iPhone 3G is its meager battery life. Therefore, Apple will most likely claim the next iPhone has improved battery life. We’ll have to test the next iPhone’s battery life to see if Apple’s claims are true.

OLED screen
Source: Apple iPhone Apps; Register Hardware
Probability: 20%
An obscure iPhone blog reported a rumor that the next iPhone will feature an OLED screen. However, this is unlikely as OLEDs are expensive and would likely drive the iPhone’s price points higher. Evidence of this feature is scant.

Glowing Apple logo on the back
Probability: 20%
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
Unnecessary. Rumor comes from an obscure blog with little cred.

Discontinuation of the metal band surrounding the edge of the device
Probability: 20%
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
No evidence of this. We’re not sure why Apple would choose to remove this band.

Rubber-tread backing
Probability: 15%
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
Unlikely, as it would be ugly, and Apple likes pretty things. Also, the rumor comes from the same obscure blog as the one above.

Built-in FM transmitter
Source: Apple iPhone Apps
Probability: 10%
We see no compelling reason for Apple to put this in the iPhone, as it is not a feature that users have been demanding, and it hasn’t appeared in other iPods.

What are your bets? Add your predictions in the comments below.

Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

Don’t take it personally, Blu-ray — we still love you and all, but there’s just something dreamy about baking 1.6TB of information onto a blank piece of optical media we can actually afford. According to a new report, a crew of researchers at Swinburne University of Technology in Australia have exploited the properties of a certain gold nano-rod that will theoretically enable them to shove 300 DVDs worth of data onto a single disc. Calling the method “five-dimensional optical recording,” the technique “employs nanometer-scale particles of gold as a recording medium,” and according to developers, it’s primed for commercialization. Essentially, these gurus have figured out how to add a spectral and polarization dimension, giving them the ability to record information “in a range of different color wavelengths on the same physical disc.” As for the chances this actually makes it out of the laboratory and into the lives of real humans? Slim, Jim.

[Thanks, Sam]

Filed under: Storage, Science

Aussie whiz-kids can cram 1.6TB on a DVD-sized disc, go Outback tonight originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 May 2009 06:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sure, you already have piles of flash drives scattered around your apocalyptic nightmare of an apartment, but this one’s more special than those, right? Because it’s a Transformer– Ravage, AKA Tripredacus Agent. Ravage has outlived the age of cassette and is onto smaller, better things, and he can store up to 2GB of your most valuable data. He’s going to run $42.99 when he’s available in September, and can be pre-ordered now.

Update: It looks like the pre-order is already sold out! Wonder if the fact that we ordered 1,000 of them has anything to do with it?

[Via Coolest Gadgets]

Filed under: Storage

Transformers USB flash drive is ready to ravage your files, bring carnage to your desktop originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 May 2009 16:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that then-named S256 we saw sneak out right around a month ago? Yeah, that bad boy’s finally on sale, and it’s shipping as we speak from a number of trustworthy e-tailers. Said SSD — which now goes formally by P256 — packs specially selected Samsung MLC flash memory and a sophisticated Samsung Controller IC, coupled with 128MB of cache memory and Native Command Queuing (NCQ) support for stutter-free performance. By the books, this one can reach speeds of up to 220MB/sec (read) and 200MB/sec (write), though you can bet you’ll be paying for the haste. We’re seeing it on sale for around $658 online, though Dell’s listing shows a wicked steep $851.99. Either way, ouch. Full release is after the break.

Continue reading Corsair’s speedy P256 256GB solid state drive now shipping

Filed under: Storage

Corsair’s speedy P256 256GB solid state drive now shipping originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 May 2009 06:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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