03/26/2008, 10:55am, EDT
Wednesday, March 26thDigg founder claims added info on 3G iPhone
Digg and Pownce co-creator Kevin Rose claims to have obtained extra information about the launch of a 3G-capable iPhone, according to an update on Twitter. Following earlier claims about an updated iPhone on this weekend's Diggnation podcast, the social software developer claims to have received additional confirmation from a 'high-level VP' at a company working with Apple who says an updated device will ship in June with both support for faster networks as well as with truer GPS support.
The additions would allow previously impossible features for the handset, which has been unchanged outside of additional storage since its launch last June. In his previous claim, Rose suggested the faster iPhone would include a front video camera for two-way video chat, similar to some phones sold in Canada, Europe, and Japan. The previously unmentioned GPS would itself permit real-time positioning in Google Maps, which for now is limited to in-place triangulation using cellular and Wi-Fi signals.
Rose has had a mixed record in providing information on upcoming products but is known to have accurately reported on the iPod nano just ahead of its 2005 launch.
The claim echoes recent analyst claims and other reports of a 3G iPhone due in mid-2008 that would either replace the existing model or else supercede it as a premium version. The lack of faster Internet access has often been cited as a key limit to the iPhone's sales success outside of North America, as Europeans frequently opt for 3G phones while countries such as Japan often depend exclusively on 3G for phone service.
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Apple would VERY publicly go after him AND the "vp" who leaked this info if there were a real leak. It isn't.
This is like predicting that the average cost of internet access will rise in the foreseeable future. DUH. Yeah, an internet VP told me that! Srsly!
So no, it isn't necessarily just the source, though you'd have to be a lawyer to know how far trade secret protection would extend in such a case.
I can see GPS and 3G being stuck in there along with a potentially real GPS maps application, but dual-cameras is a bit far-fetched (and really not as pleasing). It would undoubtedly increase the size of the phone itself. And there's no one besides iPhone users to voice-conference with.
If anything, we'll still see the same exterior, just with a new interior. I DO expect a true iChat application of some sort.