iPhone nano rumors heating up, destined for Q4?
By Darren Murph 
posted Jul 9th 2007 7:31PM
posted Jul 9th 2007 7:31PM
While analysts have been speculating that Apple may unleash a smaller (and cheaper) handset in the not too distant future in order to grab a sect of market share not interested in the relatively pricey iPhone, the rumors are seeming to gain traction. According to Kevin Chang, a JP Morgan analyst based in Taiwan, Apple is actually looking to "launch a cheaper version of the iPhone in the fourth quarter that could be based on its iPod nano music player." The report cited anonymous sources "in the supply channel" and also referenced the now-famed patent that suggests such a device could be materializing. Still, we'd highly recommend taking all of this in with a healthy heap of salt for the time being, but don't be incredibly shocked if your next iPod nano unexpectedly rings while you're stereotypically browsing through Gorillaz tracks.[Thanks, Matt, image courtesy of InformationArchitects]
How can they get all that over-hype in such a small package?
Trust me I have been hyping a small package for years. So far "sales figures" are better than expected
hahaha oh wow.
best. reply. EVER.
Yay! My dream! Really.
I hope this rumor is true. It'll be the iPod family and the iPhone family only this time spawning little touch-screen semi-smart phones that'll be free with activation (oh, I wish).
But yeah, sounds sweet.
perhaps a phone-only iphone?
Of Course it's coming Just in Time for the Holidays! Apple always offers the High End Product
first and then offers a Product for the Rest of us! History Repeats People! Think About it!
yep, like the 20th anniversary mac ((high-end)10k) and the 30th anniversary mac(low-end)0k)... oh yeah that never delivered! nice try with the "ALWAYS".
I thought the current iPhone was based on the Nano. Steve said that the price was a combination of a smart phone and the most popular portable music player, the iPod Nano. Plus, how could something that small be usefull? They'd need to get rid of the home button and integrate the sensors/speaker into the crome at the top so the screen could be as large as possible.
The only similarity I see with the current iPhone and iPod nano is its memory capacity, and I think that's what Mr. Jobs meant.
Size-wise, it's more like the regular old iPod, isn't it?
Yeah, you're right. Size wise it's like the iPod. I still don't think that a nano sized iPhone would make too much sense. Imagine trying to type on that small virtual keyboard.
--singing- "Hey! Hey! iPhone! ...I don't like your boyfriend. No Way! No Way! ...I think you need a new one. Hey! Hey! iPhone! ...I could be your boyfriend. AT&T sucks AT&T sucks. Hey! Hey! iPhone! ...I know that you like me. No Way! No Way! ...I know it's not a secret. Hey! Hey! iPhone! ...I want to be your boyfriend! AT&T sucks AT&T sucks."
get a room!
That song infringes on my copyrighted AT&T-hating. Expect a letter from my lawyers.
You better be wearing a mini-skirt and knee socks.
...so far I received a citation for public indecency, got sued and got sexually harassed by a member of the same sex. All in one comment! Thank you iPhone!
iPhone ruins peoples' lives...don't do iPhone...please...
My mom knows I'd never hurt her. THEN SHE GOT IN THE WAY.
iPhone.
Not Even Once.
I hope they just change the size. I can't imagine what features they could remove form the already feature free iphone.
Well maybe you have no imagination? Here's what I imagined last week: http://www.flickr.com/photos/83512992@N00/718518654/
@ireland
I personally say have dual typing functionality. T9 typing if you want to hold it vertical and QWERTY if you want to hold it horizontal. Kind of how they have the dual search functionality with the iPod mode. Virtical is lists.. and Landscape is Coverflow.
I'm not buying this rumor. The phone is already quite small and relatively simplified. If it gets any more nano-like, there won't be much left to differentiate it from other phones.
It would make much more sense for Apple to release a "Pro" version of the phone with more robust business like features, more like a Blackberry, with 3G, full Exchange support, more options, etc., and better 3rd party software support.
But they are already pushing it on price, so they'd need to drop the price of this phone when that happens, and release the Pro version at no higher than the current iPhone price.
based on the picture the nano will be for Cingular? Are they changing the name back to cingular for the iPhone nano? This is great marketing scheme!
*cough* bullshit *cough*
no no no no.. now we're going to get all this iphone nano crap for months on end???
Can't we please get an i-anything specific site and get all the stupid rumors on that site? I'm getting so damn tired of all that Apple stuff.
try the apple hater rss feed.
A shuffle iphone would dial numbers randomly. That would be cool.
If I had to choose, I'd take the bigger piece of crap over this little piece of crap.
what if they released a shuffle iphone? what would that be? and teeny tiny piece of crap?
Instead of launching a smaller why doesn't they focus on a Service Pack 1 for the iPhone in order to get rid of all the stupid functional limitations Steve Jobs has implemented on what could be the perfect phone.
I'm looking forward to the even smaller iPhone shuffle, which has no screen and calls a random person when you press talk.
Ha Ha!
Feel good...chugga chugga...feel good...
Gorillaz!
Reminds me of that "iPhone shuffle" mock-up... You don't know who you're gonna call.
The thing is, what's going to happen to the actual iPods? Any upgrades?
I can assure you that I can add something to this iphone stuff. Come december there will be a 3g iphone with a bigger capacity hard drive. I was told this info from the people at my work.
There is no hard drive in the iPhone. It is all flash memory.
Unless you work at Apple the people at your work are only going off of rumors. That being said they better come out with a 3G unit, and soon like. Without that and some other improvements (better email support, mp3's set as ringtones, ect.) the iPhone is going to start to lose it's luster very quickly.
Though I don't pay much mind to rumors I do see a strategy for something like this. The iPhone interface is quite remarkable. It is possible that they had a nano-type (just mp3 player and cell phone)iPhone ready but realized just the interface alone wouldn't push sales. So they released an almost finished smart-phone version to generate revenues and beat MS to market. Now they can release the nano before the hype dies down and really capitalize on all the attention people have been giving to the interface. And they're left with time to make sure they get every feature in version 2 that should've gone into version 1.
The problem is that the screen would be too freakin small for a USEFUL, completely touch interface. They would need buttons.. then it would just be an overpriced phone with a 2 year locked in plan.
How about we don't want a new phone Apple and just give us the damn touch screen iPod already. I will not switch over to AT&T
I can put money on this. A smaller iPhone will come out by Chirstmas time...
Jesus Jr. ?
Baby Jesus?
Makes sense to produce a smaller version that has less features and a lower price. They will probably sell a higher volume and have a higher profit than the original.
Don't you people get enough? Seriously iPhone coverage overload.
Isn't the iPhone a Nano with a phone tacked on and an admittedly innovative interface?
No thanks, I'm waiting for the iphone shuffle.
Me too! Call a random person in your contact list!
From what I've heard of the problems with the regular iPhone release and function, I think that Apple and At&T should get their $#!t together on this one first before going ahead with a nano version. Whereas I think this post is bunk. First off, an analyst in Taiwan said this? What about an analyst in the country that actually distributes the iPhone? If an analyst actually got to play with an iPhone, they might think twice about the possibility of prophesying a nano release. Second, all these unnamed sources in the supply channel I have a hard time buying. I know this was the case for the first iPhone where everyone thought it was a lie, but someone leaking information from a no name supplier in Asia doesn't really have me yelling "Stars & garters! A Nano iPhone!". Trust me, you'll see it when you believe it.
~JYH
You're right. They are probably smart enough to get freakin' apps on the first iPhone and get it working well before a smaller version.
Taiwanese companies (with factories in China) manufacture the iphone for Apple, so the analyst might know what he's talking about.
BS at the moment. Unless it's also thicker or has worse battery life, I'm quite certain current technology does not allow the iPhone to get too much smaller than it is right now. Unless, of course, I'm underestimating the power savings a smaller screen will give. Or if the OS is signficantly less powerful.
Maybe in a year, but not anytime soon.
And honestly, I don't think the iPhone will sell too much further than this hype. I don't think apple has quite figured out that the mobile phone market is nothing like the DAP market. I suspct somethign really nasty is going to come out of their deal with at&t--probably something along the lines of unlocking phones, at&t/customers getting pissed, and other more restrictive cell phone providers (i.e. everyone but at&t) not allowing apple to use their network without serious restrictions.
Or maybe a lawsuit regarding broken glass.
It's all speculation of course. We'll see what happens.
while there might be a new iPhone out toward christmas (european version?), i don't think it'll be called the iPhone nano. the video iPod and the nano differ in the storage capacity and medium, so the current iPhone is already more akin to a nano than a regular iPod. there's no way to make a 60 gig iPhone without making it cost an ungodly amount of money (flash memory) or killing the battery life (hard drive), and what would even be the point of a 2 gig iPhone?
plus, as some people have mentioned, typing is already hard enough on the iPhone keyboard. i shudder to think what it'll be like on a screen half the size, and i don't think apple will ditch the iPod functionality unless they ditch everything else because a processor that can run OSX is certainly powerful enough to decode MP3s.
imo, a stripped down iPhone would be nothing more than something that can make calls with a touch screen interface, and i don't think even apple could get away with charging a premium for that.
yeh right. i wonder what idiot is gonna be an iphone with a 1 inch touch screen. have fun typing on that thing.
safari will be a blast with all the magnification as well.
iPhone Part 2. iPhone, the redux. iPhone, the sequel. iPhone: The Revenge of the Nano. Let the frickin' hype begin.
Based solely on this iPhone Nano rumor, I'm speculating that the iPhone is not selling as well as they expected it to. Why bother with a smaller, cheaper version if people would be willing to buy a more expensive version. Sure, I guess it could be seen as widening the iPhone product line so MORE people could purchase an iPhone of some sort. Sell the iPhone Nano to poorer countries like Mexico, India or Russia. I guess Apple intends to sell 15 million iPhones by hook or by crook.
Me, I don't really care about iPhones. I just want a multi-touch, wide-screen, 80 GB+ iPod. I guess it won't have the option of WiFi if they're taking out all the communication parts. Too bad. At least there'll be more room for a decent size battery. Apple will be able to make more profit if all they need to do is rip out the guts of an iPhone and turn it into a iPod Multi-touch.
But why the heck would a limited function iPod need to run OSX. Sounds like overkill to me. Ah...I'm getting a headache.
The image here is misleading. The actual patent application has the touch interface on the back (bottom) and the display on the top (front). For those who don't feel like taking the 3-click-trip, here are the relevant links:
http://www.unwiredview.com/2007/05/10/next-gen-ipod-and-iphone-nano-full-screen-with-touchpanel-at-the-bottom/
http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=%2220070103454%22.PGNR.&OS=DN/20070103454&RS=DN/20070103454
I believe that was posted here or on engadgetmobile back when it was filed in May
Does anyone remember what Kevin Rose of Digg.com said when he said that he had seen the iphone months in advance of it release? He said it was "small as shit", a slider and similar to the nano. Maybe he had seen this version of the iphone? Does anyone else remember this?
I hope this isn't true. Apple just got into the cell phone market. They should be focusing on the 2nd gen iPhone, rather than producing another handset.
Nano-Phone Before Long? Not a chance!!
Regardless of what Kevin Chang and JP Morgan think, there will NOT be a slim nano-sized/styled iPhone anytime soon. There are about a hundred good reasons for this, including....
1. Too small a form factor for a touch-screen based smartphone - Not enough room for all the components and a decent battery. Heat would also be a real killer.
2. It would cost about 85% of what it costs to build the current model (about $230, rather than $263), so it could not sell for much less than the current iPhone. Maybe $429? What idiot would buy it to save $50 or even $150 over the full iPhone model? You're going to spend over $1,400 for the plan over a two-year contract, so you needn't scrimp on a smaller, harder to use iPhone model.
3. Apple NEVER intros a 'Model B' of anything before selling the bolts out of 'Model A'. Read: at least a year before a new iPhone model, likely with the same form factor as the current one but more storage (20GB flash, probably), 3G option, improved business connectivity, better camera, and possibly GPS and removeable battery. Probably still on AT&T in the US, at a $450 or $500 price point.
Somebody has obviously confused this with the REAL product coming up -- a line of multi-touch-screen Nano-sized iPods coming later this year (likely 6GB and 20GB Flash-memory-based models). Not to mention a wacky multi-touch mouse on next month's two new iMac models.
In the meantime, we can look forward to several firmware updates to the current iPhone from late August onward, real chat/SMS, Adobe Flash Lite and some sort of a service deal for Microsoft Exchange support. (Don't bet on a 3G firmware activation for this model.)
- BA
If this was coming out this year, or even in the first quarter of next year, Wouldn't the FCC have already leaked all the information for it already. This is just extra hype so that people that can't afford the current Jesus phone will be able to hope for a cheaper Jesus phone. Why not just save your Jesus loving Phone Money up and buy the current model.
great! an iPhone Nano with 512mb of flash memory! Awesome! thanks apple. you made me believe that by getting less i was actually getting more.
dude iphone's got an os which is 700mb huge and...i wonder how will they ever fit it in a 512mb flash drive!!!
i really really doubt it
There really isn't any way that an iPhone Nano could be cost effective or of high enough calibur to justify production...here's a decent look at it:
http://mac.blorge.com/2007/07/09/jp-morgan-analyst-sends-iphone-nano-enthusiasts-false-hopes/
Finally.
This should be able to win the market for the iphone.
No excuses anymore you winblows and linloosers.
If you don't get an iPhone after this is released you are just a fucking hater.
Um, since it's already a nano-storage ipod (4/8gb), and doesn't really do much as a phone (video/gps/3g/mms), what the hell are they going to take out to make people buy the big one?
Umm... Shouldnt this be the iPhone Nano? Seeing as it has 4GB and 8GB only...
Eh? It already is a nano-phone. 4GB and 8GB versions. If it was an ipod phone it would have an 80GB hard drive.
I can imagine an iPhone Mini, but not an iPhone Nano!
There's just not enough screen real estate unless its just going to be a phone that plays music but doesn't let you text. Now if they can pull that off, I'd swallow my shuffle gen 2.
re: Constable Odo @ Jul 9th 2007
and it'd come on Christmas Day!
who are the three wise men?
Steve Jobs, Jonathan Ives, (Mike Matas?)
If you look at the picture in the upper-left hand corner where it shows the single strength it says Cingular not AT&T
This is not the first time that someone uses our iPhone nano mock up without attribution, but it kind of gets on my nerve if a major site does it. Here is the original:
http://www.informationarchitects.jp/iphone-nano-iphone-shuffle