Verizon iPhone to Be Announced January 11?
Saying "The Verizon iPhone is coming! For real this time," is such a tired cliché by now. But here we are saying it again because this time things really do look right.
Verizon has sent out invitations to a special event in New York City on January 11. So far, the major tech news sites have gotten invites, which is nothing new, but Apple-centric sites and reporters are getting specific invites.
That's the first indication that this is about the Verizon iPhone : Verizon doesn't carry any Apple products and wouldn't need to invite Apple reporters unless it was announcing the long-awaited Verizon iPhone. So far, both M.G. Siegler of TechCrunch and Jim Dalrymple of Loop Insight have reported receiving invites (Siegler specializes in Apple coverage and Dalrymple's site exclusively covers Apple news).
Another indication that this is news big enough to warrant iPhone speculation is the fact that it's getting a separate news conference so close after the Consumer Electronics Show. It's unlikely Verizon would plan a press conference so soon after making big announcements at CES unless it was big enough to warrant a separate event.
Finally, some of the most interesting evidence for the Verizon iPhone happening on January 11 is who won't be there. Gizmodo, one of the most prominent tech news sites, has not received an invite despite working closely with Verizon in the past and covering all their announcements. However, Gizmodo has been blacklisted by Apple after reporting on the lost iPhone 4 prototype last year. If Apple is directly involved in this Verizon announcement, that might explain the Gizmodo exclusion.
Lately, evidence has been pointing to the Verizon iPhone release sometime soon . However, all this evidence doesn't completely erase all doubts. For instance, most industry experts expected Apple to be the one to announce this news, not Verizon. And Apple usually likes to keep announcements close to the Apple campus in Silicon Valley, so the New York City location raises some additional doubts.
Still, things seem to fit well enough that many people expect this to be the big day when we finally see the Verizon iPhone. We'll find out on January 11.
