iPhone 4S Record Sales - Who's Really Disappointed?

As the reality and disappointment in the tech community set in that Apple wasn't going to be releasing a new iPhone 5, just a modified iPhone 4, consumers came away from the Apple special event with clearly a different take as evidenced by their actions when they got their first chance to preorder a new iPhone 4S.

The iPhone 4S pre-order period ended with record sales surpassing (by nearly 400,000 units) the record sales set forth during the iPhone 4 preorder period.

"CUPERTINO, California—October 10, 2011—Apple® today announced pre-orders of its iPhone® 4S have topped one million in a single day, surpassing the previous single day pre-order record of 600,000 held by iPhone 4."

Why such a disconnect between the media takeaway of the Apple Special event and the consumer who clearly ignored this negative sentiment with an overwhelming eagerness to get their hands on a new iPhone 4S?  Really, the answer is quite simple.

Needless to say, Apple has built quite a reputation on creating quality products.  Whether you're a fan of them or not, you can't deny that their products connect with an overwhelming number of consumers.  If you're a techie, you can gripe that the iPhone is limited in customization options (without jailbreaking), but, in being objective, you have to admit that the iPhone is solid in nearly every aspect from form to function.  There's little disagreement that it's the industry standard (even if you're an Android fan).

If you're a consumer, you're not worried about any (or at least most) of these technical nuances.  When you take your new iPhone out of the box, it looks great.  You turn it on, it looks even better.  You immediately go to use it and there's virtually no learning curve in getting started with the basic functions.

If you view the iPhone 4S from this vantage point, let's look at what you get.  The iPhone 4S has the same great design that the iPhone 4 had, but it will be faster, loaded with new software features, a better camera and video recording capabilities, and a new voice operated assistant.  Of course the consumer's reaction is going to be, "Wow!".  Your friend loves their iPhone, there's no way I'm not going to love the new one even more!  You get my point.

For the most part, the general consumer is not overly concerned and, in many instances, may not even be aware of all of the small details that come under the hood of the new iPhone 4S.  They may not realize that it's essentially twice as fast as the iPhone 4, boasting 7x improved graphics performance.  They may not even understand what the new notification system and iMessage software enhancements will mean to them in terms of improved performance and overall usability.  They may not even realize that Siri software is the foundation behind the new voice operated assistant.  These are mere details that the tech community delves into and is left to sort out while the consumer is going to stick with the general tag lines that Apple and Apple owners market so well.

From the tech side, they were widely anticipating and eagerly waiting for the "oh, there's one more thing" and the "one more thing" was supposed to be the new iPhone 5.  When that didn't show, neither did their overwhelming excitement and positive reviews for the new iPhone 4S!

iPhone 5 Release Date Delayed?

Yes, as you can imagine, the iPhone 5 rumors are beginning to fly fast and furious and the most recent reports are indicating that there may be some hiccups with the new iPhone 5 release date.

According to 9to5 Mac, it appears that the iPhone 4S (dubbed to be a lower-end iPhone, nearly identical in form to the existing iPhone 4) is moving along nicely through production and should launch in early October (widely expected to be October 7, 2011) and there will be plenty of supply for consumers to get their hands on one.

However, there's a different tune with the new iPhone 5 release date and it appears that this higher-end, newly designed, iPhone 5 is facing potential production delays.

It appears that the tear-drop shaped iPhone 5 with larger screen and thinner, rounder body is seeing continued design and production delays, at least on one assembly line (Apple has multiple production sources – Pegatron, Foxconn, etc). We therefore think that iPhone 5 will be delayed slightly at the very least and may see shortages all the way into 2012. - Source 9to5 Mac

With that said, and as usual, stay tuned as more of this story will certainly unfold since we're getting awfully close to the new iPhone release date - whatever it turns out to be!

New Sprint iPhone 2011 Release Date

The latest rumors are becoming even clearer in regards to when we will see the new Sprint iPhone 2011 release date and the timing may be sooner than you expected!

Many consumers and tech enthusiast had been wondering, "will Sprint get the iPhone"?  The simple answer is, "yes", and that point was made quite clearly in this recent Sprint iPhone announcment (via Sprint Nextel Corp. press briefing).

However, if you still had any doubts (which by this point you shouldn't!), than this latest bit of news should put any further questions to rest.

Over the weekend, an inside source provided BGR with a leaked internal document clearly indicating that Best Buy is preparing to begin preorders for the new Sprint iPhone 5 in the first week of October.  This report would go hand in hand with the most recent leaks indicating that the actual iPhone 5 launch will occur on October 7, 2011 or October 14, 2011.  However, as these rumors typically go, their inside source claimed that, despite the leaked internal Best Buy memo, it's very possible that preorders for the new Sprint iPhone 2011 could begin as early as this week!

At first, this timing seemed to be a little suspect, but Deutsche Telekom made it very clear with their announcment this morning that the new iPhone 5 release date is imminent:

Deutsche Telekom AG (DTE) will allow customers to reserve the next generation of Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPhone as of today in anticipation of supply bottlenecks for the device, spokesman Alexander von Schmettow said by phone. The operator will hand out coupons to people who expressly request the successor model to the iPhone 4, without providing the name or release details of the device, he said.

Coming as no surprise, September is getting started off with a bang and should continue to provide some excitment surrounding the next generation iPhone!

Sprint iPhone 5 Release Date

Reports have now surfaced that Sprint will be a part of the iPhone 5 release date.  Yes, it does appear that Sprint will be launching the new iPhone 5:

"Sprint Nextel Corp. will begin selling the iPhone 5 in mid-October, people familiar with the matter said, closing a huge hole in the No. 3 U.S. carrier’s lineup and giving Apple Inc. another channel for selling its popular phone. The timing, however, indicates Apple’s new iPhone will hit the market later than expected and too late to contribute to sales in the company’s fiscal fourth quarter, which ends in September. Most observers had expected the device to arrive next month. Top U.S. carrier Verizon Wireless and No. 2 AT&T Inc. will begin selling the phone in mid-October as well, two of the people said. Sprint had more than 52 million subscribers at the end of the second quarter, compared with 106 million for Verizon and nearly 99 million for AT&T." - Source: Wall Street Journal

For some time now, rumors have been circulating that Apple would be releasing new iPhones across all major carriers.  It only makes sense that Apple would choose this path in consideration of the inroads Google has made with their Android operating system on the smartphone market share.

Competition is the name of the game and you can bet Apple will do whatever they can to remain competitve.  In the past, they've been able to remain competitive since the iPhone was a far superior device.  Now, there are many top Android smartphones, across all of the major carriers, that are offering similar smartphone experiences.

No doubt, Sprint customers will be happy with this announcement as were many Verizon customers who anxiously awaited the new iPhone arrival on their network!

iPhone 5 Video Rumors - What to Expect?

Check out this iPhone 5 video. As the iPhone 5 rumors and leaks continue to fly, this iPhone 5 video has some nice renditions of what the iPhone 5 release date may bring.

Courtesy of Nowhereelse.fr, this iPhone 5 video also attaches percentages to the likelihood of seeing some of the most popular next generation iPhone rumors coming to fruition.

I'm hoping the next generation iPhone has a bigger screen, I'm not going to argue with it being thinner, and I wouldn't miss the home button. Of course, improved iPhone battery life would be a bonus, too!

iPhone 5 Release Date News - Verizon Moving iPhone 4 Accessories

The latest iPhone 5 release date news, rumors, and speculation comes from a tipster who alerted Phone Arena (a tech blog) that Verizon wireless is beginning to discount iPhone 4 accessories.  If the tipster's leak is found to be credible, then that would indicate that Verizon wireless is looking to move inventory of iPhone 4 accessories (ahead of the next generation iPhone release date) to make room for the next generation iPhone accessories.

Latest Rumors Pointing Towards an iPhone 5 Release Date?

This latest iPhone rumor would also indicate that we may be looking at an iPhone 5 release date instead of the potential iPhone 4S release date we've been hearing a buzz about lately.

If you're not up to speed with the latest iPhone rumors, recent speculation has been hinting that Apple has been having issues with an overheating A5 chip (supposed next generation iPhone processor).

Consequently, an iPhone 5 release date (bringing with it a newly redesigned iPhone) has been put off and would be replaced by an iPhone 4S release date (a minor update to the existing iPhone 4).

However, if Verizon wireless is truly discounting iPhone 4 accessories, then you'd have to believe they're making room for new iPhone accessories that would accomadate a new iPhone design.  Otherwise, similar to the iPhone 3 to iPhone 3GS upgrade, the existing iPhone 4 accessories would fit the rumored iPhone 4S and, as a result, Verizon's existing iPhone 4 accessories wouldn't need to be blown out to make room for the next gen iPhone accessories.

Next Generation iPhone Release Date Timing

Whatever surprises are in store for us when the next generation iPhone launches, most iPhone rumors are still pointing towards an early September next generation iPhone release date in the U.S. while a next generation iPhone release date would occur a month later Internationally.

Stay tuned for more iPhone rumors as they will be surely making the rounds, sooner rather than later, as the next gen iPhone release date nears.  This far along in the process, it's nearly impossible to keep the iPhone leaks from coming.

If an iPhone release date is looming, Apple has already alterted their vendors to important deadlines and vendors are most certainly actively involved (and have been actively involved) in getting the next generation iPhone and next gen iPhone accessories to market.

iPhone Rumors and Speculation - A New iPhone Product Line

If you're a frequent reader who makes the rounds surfing from one tech blog to another, you're well aware of the iPhone rumors pointing towards a nearing iPhone 5 release date or perhaps an iPhone 4S release date.

To add to the iPhone rumor mill, things got much more interesting today. According to BGR sources, it looks like Apple may be making a move towards the introduction of an iPod-esque product line for the iPhone.  When you couple this rumor with BGR's previous speculative report that Sprint and T-Mobile would both be getting the iPhone in the near future, the direction of Apple's iPhone marketing strategy is becoming quite clear.

In short, it looks like they believe that they can remain competive with Google's Android smartphones by introducing iPhones that are affordable to all segments of the consumer market and available on any of the major wireless carriers.  There's no doubt in my mind (I'm certainly not going out on a limb here) that Apple will pick up additional market share in doing so.  Additional iPhone saturation into a much larger consumer pool is inevitable if these rumors morph into reality.

If this marketing strategy comes to fruition, speculation has it that Apple will be releasing a prepaid iPhone 3GS.  Yes, at a $350 price point, a prepaid original iPhone 3GS!  The iPhone 4 would fill the middle rung and the next generation iPhone would fill the top spot of the consumer market.

Time will tell!

More iPhone 5 Rumors Point Towards a Delayed Launch Date

Yes, more iPhone 5 rumors are hitting the blogosphere and there's no doubt many more iPhone rumors will be on the way in consideration of the growing speculation that the iPhone 5 release date will be delayed well past what's become Apple's typical June / July iPhone release date.

The latest iPhone 5 rumor, courtesy of MacRumors, only adds fuel to the speculation that the iPhone 5 release date will be delayed until later this year.

"One MacRumors reader has, however, received word from an AT&T customer care representative that Apple has officially informed the carrier that there will be no new iPhone released in the usual June-July timeframe.

The disclosure came after the reader noticed that his eligibility date for a subsidized upgrade had been pushed back by over five months and contacted AT&T to inquire about the reason for the change. As part of a response outlining AT&T's criteria for determining upgrade eligibility dates, the agent reportedly offered the following statement as fact:

'Apple has informed us that they do not plan to release the iPhone in the June to July timeframe, though there will be a newer version in the future. Unfortunately, we have not been given a release time for the new phone. We will release this information on our website when it is available to us.'"

Even though most of the credible iPhone 5 rumors being leaked point towards a Fall iPhone release date, it's very possible that the new iPhone 5 release date could be delayed into the 2011 Holiday Season.  Either way, it's becoming increasingly doubtful that a new iPhone 5 launch date will take place in the early summer.  If you're on AT&T and are patiently waiting for the new iPhone 5, it looks like you will have to wait some more.  And, adding to the rumor mill, if the new iPhone 5 rumors are correct, and it doesn't launch until later this year, you may be better off waiting a few months longer for the rumored iPhone 6 release date and the new redesign that's supposed to come with it!

Yes, our hands are going to be full dealing with the new iPhone 5 or 6 rumors.  To get caught up to speed on some of the most recent iPhone 5 / 6 speculation, check out our iPhone posts (links included immediately below) and our thoughts on why Apple, outside of potential IOS 5 software or hardware supply delays, might be purposely looking towards pushing out the new iPhone 5 launch date.

• iPhone 5 Release Date
• iPhone 5 Release Date Update
• iPhone 6 Release Date Rumors