For several weeks, rumors surrounding Apple’s iPhone announcement this fall have mentioned two devices: the iPhone 5, and the iPhone 4S. While we’re all expecting the iPhone 5 to look different, boast a thinner form factor, and have updated components; the iPhone 4S is expected to look just like the iPhone 4, but could be a cheaper ‘budget’ device.
The latest components sporting that famous ‘N94’ moniker seem to strengthen those claims of a budget iPhone 4.
An iPhone front panel discovered by MacPost reveals that an upcoming iPhone will look identical to the iPhone 4. The panel is marked ‘N94’, which is the internal codename for a future iPhone, and indicates this component is from a prototype device. It is also labeled ‘EVT1’, which stands for Engineer Verification Testing — the final stage of prototype testing — and is dated March 3, 2011.
MacPost reports:
“The LCD part is clearly labeled as N94 “EVT1″ (Engineering Verification Testing) with date ’03-March-2011′. Whilst, the white front cover posted few days back was labeled “EVT2″ with date ’07-June-2011′. Since these are marked as N94 EVT1, the images are definitely of next generation model.”
While we initially expected the N94 to be the iPhone 5, recent component leaks reveal it could actually be that cheaper iPhone 4 that some reports have recently been mentioning. It will boast no major changes when compared to the existing iPhone 4 — the camera, processor and display are all expected to be the same — but it could be reduced to just 8GB of storage to make the handset cheaper.
Of course, it’s possibly that these parts are for the iPhone 5, and that they shatter our dreams of a redesigned fifth-generation iPhone. But would Apple really make us wait 18 months for a slightly upgraded iPhone 4? We don’t think so. What do you think?
[via iDB]
Killian Bell is a freelance writer based in the U.K. He has an interest in all things tech and also covers Android over at CultofAndroid.com. You can follow him on Twitter via @killianbell.
