About Those VeriPhone Rumors...

**Paul Daniel Ash** · 08-13-2010, 01:58 PM

Rumors are not news, I know… but when enough reports come together, all pointing in the same direction, then at a given point it's worth stopping and taking a look at what it all adds up to. If you're bored by all the rumor talk (and believe me, I'm pretty sick of it myself), please accept my apologies, and don't click the MORE link. For the sake of some folks out there, though - people who are wondering if they should buy an iPhone 4 now, for example, or if they should extend their AT&T contract - let's look at what the evidence there is for a Verizon iPhone in 2011.

Verizon Wireless - just to review - uses a different telephony standard from AT&T and the other big US carriers. All current iPhones use GSM, so there would need to be a different device to work on Verizon's CDMA network. According to many observers, Apple has been working on an iPhone compatible with the largets US network for a long time now. In particular, John Gruber - who has a lot of inside sources and is so reliably pro-Apple that some people think that Steve Jobs pays him off - has been saying for a while that "Apple has a skunkworks CDMA iPhone project" like the skunkworks Intel Mac project back in the day when Mac OS X only ran on PowerPC.

Gruber went further this week and specifically identified the CDMA iPhone by the Apple codename N92 (the iPhone 4, you may remember, was called N89 before its release). The phone, he says, is in Engineering Verification Test phase, which is limited to testing of one-off units inside the company. DVT, or Design Verification Test phase, is when Apple employees take phones out in the world (and lose them, sometimes). So if the CDMA phone takes that next step, it means the wheels need to already be turning for production in China.

Bolstering this idea, TechCrunch's Steve Cheney reported at the beginning of the week that Apple is ordering millions of CDMA chips from Qualcomm. If Gruber is right that the VeriPhone is in EVT, then Apple would need to place that order right about now to have production ready by the end of the year. And as Michael reported the same day, leaks from the Asian manufacturing industry independently corroborated this story, and are indicating that a CDMA phone (possibly made of Apple's new Magic Metal) will be built by Pegatron for Verizon and China Telecom.

Also this week, we learned that AT&T revealed in a filing to the SEC that it's warning its investors about possible negative effects when "exclusivity arrangements end" for popular smartphones. Since the iPhone is the only AT&T-exclusive smartphone that can be considered "popular," it's pretty clear what they were referring to. Big companies don't risk upsetting their investors for no reason. And finally, another piece of the puzzle came with the announcement this week that Verizon Chief Executive Officer Ivan Seidenberg had been selected to give the high-profile keynote address at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next January. The head of the big electronics confab said he'd be looking forward to hear about "Verizon’s next generation of products," which could certainly include a certain popular smartphone currently only available on a certain unpopular carrier.

As Yogi Berra said, "It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." We don't really know whether any of these reports are true, obviously. However, if you think you can wait until January for your next phone, and won't owe AT&T a huge early termination fee… it might not be a bad idea to wait and see what happens.

**whereswaldo** · 08-13-2010, 02:02 PM

Thank you for stating actual facts, unlike the rest of the Verizon rumours which rely on "sources"

**cultgti** · 08-13-2010, 02:06 PM

just bring it to Tmobile USA and im happy with life for a long time!!

**n00neimp0rtant** · 08-13-2010, 02:08 PM

Why would Apple make a model of iPhone for carriers in 88 countries, and a completely separate model for ONE carrier in ONE country, just because they can't be bothered to update their technology? T-Mobile makes the most sense by far in the U.S.

**LastSonOfKrypton** · 08-13-2010, 02:10 PM

Jailbroken iPhone 4 on Verizon would be heaven for me.

**Poseidon79** · 08-13-2010, 02:14 PM

Once the exclusivity agreement expires they could manufacture a T-Mobile version alongside the AT&T version... just with a different baseband chip to include the other 3G frequency.

**PhanaticD** · 08-13-2010, 02:15 PM

@lostsonofkrypton amen to that

**ampdrinkr8** · 08-13-2010, 02:19 PM

i have been told from a very close friend who works for verizon..... and from what ive heard its gonna happen .. that they are designing one iphone specifically for verizon only in the u.s ... but like everyone else .. im so sick of the rumors etc ... its to the point now ..i hope iT DOESNT HAPPEN ... just because how big s deal its became ... i think they should just offer to t-mobile and att only in the u.s ... bcthe iphone is what seperates the 2 companys as of the past few years obviously

**soulthoughts** · 08-13-2010, 02:19 PM

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it impossible to talk and use data on Verizon at the same time? If so, how would that work?

**tellytel** · 08-13-2010, 02:23 PM

i personally dont care if it happens. But thinking about it, doesnt sprint run a cmda chip in their phones? Cause a unlocked cmda iphone on sprints network for 69$ unlimitied sounds pretty good.

**Kyle Matthews** · 08-13-2010, 02:23 PM

Originally Posted by n00neimp0rtant

Why would Apple make a model of iPhone for carriers in 88 countries, and a completely separate model for ONE carrier in ONE country, just because they can't be bothered to update their technology? T-Mobile makes the most sense by far in the U.S.

There are tons of CDMA carriers, and over 500 million CDMA users.

**zoofer** · 08-13-2010, 02:24 PM

With Verizon's CDMA will I be able to talk on the phone while checking my email?

**greek.guy** · 08-13-2010, 02:24 PM

Originally Posted by LastSonOfKrypton

Jailbroken iPhone 4 on Verizon would be heaven for me.

Originally Posted by PhanaticD

@lostsonofkrypton amen to that

agreed.

but like others said, this rumor is long overdue. If it doesnt happen in january i really hope it just dies out..

**JazJon** · 08-13-2010, 02:26 PM

Originally Posted by soulthoughts

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it impossible to talk and use data on Verizon at the same time? If so, how would that work?

I think I read they might have a work around for that, someone please confirm. If know you can when they finish 4G

**Trooper Sam** · 08-13-2010, 02:34 PM

Originally Posted by n00neimp0rtant

Why would Apple make a model of iPhone for carriers in 88 countries, and a completely separate model for ONE carrier in ONE country, just because they can't be bothered to update their technology? T-Mobile makes the most sense by far in the U.S.

China has an enormous base of CDMA users. That market alone would make it a good business decision.

**mohaas05** · 08-13-2010, 02:36 PM

Verizon is moving their network over to LTE, which currently is data only. It's not a stretch that the VeriPhone may use LTE for data and CDMA for voice.

**J_Marley** · 08-13-2010, 02:51 PM

Originally Posted by n00neimp0rtant

Why would Apple make a model of iPhone for carriers in 88 countries, and a completely separate model for ONE carrier in ONE country, just because they can't be bothered to update their technology? T-Mobile makes the most sense by far in the U.S.

I'm sorry, but this is a completely ignorant comment. It has nothing to do with updating technology, and actually if you did some research, you would find that there is a VERY good reason that many companies in the US are CDMA instead of GSM.

And as far as the T-Mobile making the most sense in the US? Again, do your research before you make a statement like this. AT&T has a far greater coverage area than T-Mobile (maybe not better, but bigger). For myself, there are only two major cities in the whole state that carry T-Mobile and it does not work in most of the rest of the state. So no, T-Mobile is not a smart move for Apple if they want to reach the most market.

**wolverinemarky** · 08-13-2010, 02:51 PM

y go for just verizon i would hit sprint up and tmobile also then we can really see how andorid devices will stand up to widespread apple iPhone competition

**greek.guy** · 08-13-2010, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by JazJon

I think I read they might have a work around for that, someone please confirm. If know you can when they finish 4G

im sure if they do plan on rolling out the iphone with verizon, there will be a fix for this..at least i would hope

**justice1200** · 08-13-2010, 03:03 PM

We used to have CDMA in Australia, but Telstra canned it, shut it down and then re badged it "next G" but I am pretty sure it isn't CDMA now because my 3GS works on that network... (jailbroken and unlocked)

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