Significant hardware improvements ahead for iPhone, say tipsters

Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 24 March 2009 06:54

Opinion and Analysis

With carriers in various parts of the world adopting or planning to adopt higher 3G data speeds (even AT&T), the word is that Apple's following suit. But it's far from clear whether we're talking about 7.2, 14.4 or 21.1 Mbps.

Given the relatively limited rollout of 21.1 Mbps so far, that seems a long shot, with 7.2 or 14.4 Mbps being more likely.

It's not that users will actually get those speeds, but any real improvement is worthwhile, and is likely to be welcomed by those anticipating using the tethering feature of iPhone 3.0 to use the handset as a wireless modem for their computers.

The iPhone/iPod touch is going from strength to strength as a games platform, and another tip is that the next-gen iPhone will feature higher-performance hardware allowing for more complex games (or at least to make it easier for developers to deliver satisfactory performance from their software).

All these hardware features imply a greater load on the battery - and getting enough hours per charge is something you do hear iPhone owners... well, not exactly complaining about... let's just say they would like to get more out of each charge, and certainly wouldn't be happy if they had to recharge more frequently or restrict their use of certain features.

There are vague suggestions that new battery technology will find its way into the new iPhone, and that the use of chips from Apple subsidiary PA Semi may deliver increased performance with less drain on the battery.

Previous rumours have suggested a mid-year introduction of a new iPhone, presumably in tandem with the 3.0 software.