New Report Resurrects Verizon iPhone Rumor
Are you thinking of switching from Verizon to AT&T just so you can get the iPhone 4? You might want to wait: A new report resurrects rumors that Apple's super-popular smartphone is coming to Big Red.
Digitimes, a Taiwanese trade publication, claims Chinese contractor Pegatron has the order from Apple for an iPhone designed to run on the CDMA network that Verizon uses.
According to Digitimes: "Pegatron will also start shipping a CDMA version of the iPhone 4 to Apple in the fourth quarter and is currently using its plants in Shanghai, China to produce the products, the sources noted. The company is also working on gaining orders for MacBooks and iPads from Apple, added the sources."
Currently, Verizon, Sprint and Virgin Mobile are the only U.S. carriers using CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use the GSM network.
The rumor and its players, Pegatron, Apple and Verizon, are not new to the mobile community. In March, The Wall Street Journal reported Apple planned to produce a CDMA iPhone made by Pegatron, but hopes died for a Verizon iPhone when Apple said it has an exclusive distribution contract with AT&T through 2011, and a Verizon spokesperson said Verizon had no plans to offer Apple products in the immediate future just before the iPhone 4's official announcement at WWDC.
According to the new report, however, the Verizon iPhone will arrive sometime "this holiday season." While a holiday launch is common for the mobile industry ― Verizon's Droid launch last November ― it's a tough rumor to swallow if Apple's contract with AT&T remains in force.
Digitimes also reported Pegatron will be listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) on June 24, the same day the iPhone 4 is due in stores nationwide.
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