Wireless Industry Analyst

On reading my iPhone and WiMAX article, a friend sent me the link to another 9to5Mac story wanting to know if I had assumed only one model of the iPhone in my analysis. My answer: Yes, I am assuming that only one new model will come out. We are all confident about the 3G iPhone. That is a given. But, I do not discount the possibility of Apple launching more iPhone models.

Apart from the 3G iPhone that I have been covering in great detail on my site, the possibility of a smaller, lower-cost version is reasonable. Like the 9to5Mac article rightly updates us, it is a question of when and not whether a second model is on its way. From Apple’s perspective it makes good business sense to offer an entry-point into the emerging markets. It does not have to be a feature-rich iPhone. It is also unlikely to be 3G-capable. If I were to guess, I would expect it to be an easy-to-use, utilitarian iPhone which also doubles up as an iPod.

Apple will likely leverage its development effort on the current Infineon platform to launch this version rather than starting from scratch with another vendor. The Apple brand and the iPhone enigma will help sell these phones in newer markets thus expanding its penetration. At this point, I don’t have ideas on its feature-set, pricing and of course, its launch date.

We can also expect that Apple will upgrade its current line of iPhones. We are probably looking at models with more memory and stereo Bluetooth among other enhancements.

In summary, I have merely extended Apple’s iPod product strategy here. The product features I have mentioned are more an incomplete wish-list if anything. As for the actual product line-up and their features, we will have to wait for the moment of truth when they are launched.

Disclaimer: All thoughts expressed here are those of the author's and do not necessarily reflect those of either Atheros Communications or TensorComm Inc.