Separate teardowns of the Verizon iPhone 4 done today by iFixit and 9to5Mac have both determined that the new phone's cellular modem is compatible with both GSM and CDMA, lending credence to rumors that future iPhones will be dual-mode "world phones," with the same device able to work on networks using either cellular standard. The Verizon phone cannot be used on a GSM network, as it lacks a SIM card, but the inclusion of this chip suggests that Apple may move away from separate GSM and CDMA product lines as soon as the next iPad.
The Qualcomm MDM6600 "Gobi" chip found inside Verizon's iPhone 4 - the same one that's in Motorola's Droid Pro world phone - supports both GSM HSPA+ with data rates up to 14.4 Mb/s and CDMA's 1xEV-DO rev. B with data rates up to 4.9 Mb/s (though Verizon's network currently only uses rev. A which maxes out at 3.1 Mb/s). The Verizon phone will only work on CDMA systems not only due to the lack of a SIM but also because of the antennas: as iFixit notes, "this phone supports two cellular frequency bands, while Apple supports five bands in the GSM version."
Another minor change noted was the moved and redesigned vibrator which, as iFixit found, has a "quieter, softer feel, and makes a better sound when on a table." Apparently this is a linear vibrator, rather than the counterweighted rotating electric motor used in the GSM iPhone 4.
Source: MacRumors, image via iFixit
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