A sneak peak at the iPhone 4G

Leaked photos of the Apple iPhone 4G are circulating on the Internet. These photos are from Gizmodo and you can view the entire article here.

Do we really believe that these leaked photos accurately represent the iPhone 4G? Engadget seems to think so. What about you? I think there's enough evidence to suggest that this is an iPhone 4G prototype, but what's to say that this will be the final product?

Here's what's new:
• Front-facing video chat camera
• Improved regular back-camera (the lens is quite noticeably larger than the iPhone 3GS)
• Camera flash
• Micro-SIM instead of standard SIM (like the iPad)
• Improved display. It's unclear if it's the 960x460 display thrown around before—it certainly looks like it, with the "Connect to iTunes" screen displaying much higher resolution than on a 3GS.
• What looks to be a secondary mic for noise cancellation, at the top, next to the headphone jack
• Split buttons for volume
• Power, mute, and volume buttons are all metallic

Will we see a Verizon iPhone this year?

This question has been in the air for a few years now. Is 2010 the year when we'll see the Apple iPhone appear on the Verizon network? Last year, I think I would have said, "yes, we'll see an iPhone on Verizon in 2009." Well, it's now 2010 and there's still no iPhone on the Verizon network.

My gut tells me that we won't see the iPhone until 2011. I think it will be the iPhone 4G. I don't think we'll see a CDMA version of the iPhone 3G on the Verizon network. It's just a gut feeling, but I think Verizon is probably going to be in a better position to push the Android OS through smartphones like the Motorola Droid, the Motorola Endeavor, the Google Nexus One, the HTC Incredible, the HTC Droid Eris, and others. I don't think they should get "distracted" by the Apple iPhone this year. This way, if AT&T continues to suffer network problems due to the heightened bandwidth usage caused by the iPhone and iPad, then AT&T customers will be very eager to switch to Verizon next year.

iPhone 4G rumors

There are growing rumors regarding the next generation iPhone. I will not be surprised if it's called the Apple iPhone 4G. By then, we may be using a different system and the distinction between CDMA vs. GSM may not be relevant. Let's wait to see how networks transition from 3G to 4G and UMTS.

So, here are some of the rumors floating around:

• 64 GB or storage space (not surprising, considering the iPod touch already comes with 64 GB)
• 5 MP camera. Wow! Let's hope we see an LED flash.
• Smaller screen? Really? Instead of a 3.5" screen, we may see a 2.8" screen. I think that makes sense. 
• Available on Verizon Wireless. Well, we had been hearing about that for a while, but let's hope it's available on multiple networks. Why limit yourself to a single carrier? That simply doesn't make sense and I think Android will move ahead because of the way it's currently positioned.

I guess Apple must not have any plans to release a thicker version of an "iPhone Pro" and include a hardware slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Personally, I think that would attract many business users who rely on buttons for typing. Apple should offer both an iPhone 4G and an iPhone "Pro" 4G. Then again, maybe by the time the 4G comes out, we'll be so accustomed to on-screen typing that we won't want to go back to a hardware keyboard.