Rumor: WWDC 2011 will be software-only, iPhone 5 delayed

[Emil]

Yesterday, Apple announced its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) would take place this year from June 6, 2011 to June 10, 2011 at San Francisco's Moscone West. Cupertino also said it would "unveil the future of iOS and Mac OS."

Some are starting to interpret this to mean that WWDC 2011 will be a software-only event. The Loop is quoting its own sources to confirm that the annual conference this year will not reveal any new hardware: no new iPhone, no new iPod, no new iPad, and no new Mac.

At previous WWDCs in June, Apple would typically reveal some new piece of hardware, most recently a new version of the iPhone. The first iPhone was released on June 29, 2007. The iPhone 3G was introduced on June 9, 2008. The iPhone 3GS was announced on June 8, 2009 and arrived on June 19, 2009 in the first countries. The iPhone 4 was announced on June 7, 2010 and released on June 24, 2010.

If the interpretations of no Apple hardware are correct, it could give competitors a window of opportunity to pull ahead. Late last year, Android passed the iPhone in terms of market share in the US. If Cupertino doesn't push out an iPhone 5, that gap is going to grow even wider.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/43037-rumor-wwdc-2011-will-be-software-only-iphone-5-delayed.html

 

[Cueto_99]

Good News My iPhone 4 won't be outdated so soon!

 

[9Nails]

If rumors hold true, it will still be a 3G device. No thanks.

A faster dual-core A5 CPU and graphics chip will be nice additions to the iPhone 5, but I'd pick faster wireless access. I don't think the iPhone 5 is shaping up to be the Motorola Atrix killer.

 

[Guest]

Good.. my Iphone 2G won;t get even more outdated now ..

 

[gwailo247]

I don't agree. They'll announce SOMETHING in hardware, even if only a new case color.

Computers are not tied to contracts the way that phones are. Most people can't just buy a new phone when they feel like it, they'll either lose out on the renewal bonus (which can cut the price of such a phone in half) or be forced into another two year contract, or have to pay $600 bucks when their old $500 phone works just fine.

If they skip a year, then there will be tens of millions of people whose contract will run out before the next iPhone is announced, a lot of them may get a Android or Windows phone if no new iPhone is available. It would be a really poor decision for Apple, unless they can come up with some software solution that would transform their existing hardware into something new and useful, thus perhaps prompting people to save their "new phone money" for next year until iPhone 5 comes out.

Apple has to keep Windows at bay. They made the move to Verizon one or two years too late IMO. At this point most phones are about at par. The competition has caught up. What will really show Apple's longevity is what happens once they have to deal with actual competition.