Verizon iPhone Coming in Early 2011?
At this point it's cliché to say it, but here we go again: The iPhone is coming to Verizon. This time it's expected to happen in early 2011.
The latest version of the Verizon iPhone rumor comes from anonymous sources for the Wall Street Journal who say Apple will begin mass producing Verizon handsets by the end of 2010. That would mean the iPhone would be ready for sale on the Verizon network by the first few months of 2011 .
In order to work on the CDMA network Verizon uses, the iPhone's hardware must be redesigned from the GSM technology used on the AT&T network. Qualcomm is said to be the manufacturer providing the requisite chips for the carrier switch.
The Verizon iPhone is said to be very similar to the current iPhone 4 in its outward design, despite the changes to the inner hardware.
One of the Wall Street Journal's sources also mentioned the next iPhone, the fifth generation, saying it would have a different form factor from current models. The source didn't elaborate further. Unsurprisingly, Apple, Qualcomm and Verizon have all declined to comment on the rumor.
Rumors of a Verizon iPhone have been around ever since the first iPhone launched in 2007, but an exclusivity agreement with AT&T has prevented such a move thus far.
