If the tech world rumour mill is correct, Apple could unveil the next version of its iPhone – somewhat confusingly dubbed by some the iPhone 4G, or more accurately the iPhone OS 4.0 - at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference which begins in San Francisco on June 7.
Compounding the confusion over what exactly 4G does or does not stand for, Sprint will begin selling the HTC EVO 4G – the first WiMax-enabled smartphone - a few days earlier on June 4.
Sprint announced the shipping date for the EVO on Tuesday and confirmed that the new smartphone will cost $199 after a $100 mail-in-rebate. Buyers will also have to sign up for a new two-year service agreement and ‘Everything Data’ plan starting at $70-a-month.
But if you want to use the EVO on the Clearwire’s WiMax network which Sprint claims will deliver download speeds up to 10 times faster than 3G, you will also have to pay a $10-a-month surcharge called the ‘Premium Data’ add-on. Sprint has therefore set the initial price bar for 4G data services at $80-a-month.
In addition, EVO owners who want to use their new smartphone as a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot will have to pay an additional $30 a month. (Verizon currently offers this feature free to new Palm Pre customers.)
Both the EVO and the next generation iPhone are eagerly awaited and are likely to up the ante in the smartphone wars at a time when Apple and HTC are locked in a tit-for-tat patent dispute. (HTC countersued Apple over alleged patent infringement earlier this week.)
They also highlight the emerging battle for mindshare and marketshare between Apple’s proprietary iPhone OS and Google’s open source Android operating system which some recent surveys have suggested is now outselling Apple. Meanwhile Microsoft, Canada’s Research in Motion and Nokia are all readying new versions of their smartphone operating systems in an effort to keep pace.
Interestingly, they also highlight the different pre-sales marketing approaches adopted by the two rivals. The EVO made its public debut – along with its impressive specifications – three-months ago at the CTIA show in Las Vegas, Apple has yet to acknowledge the existence of a fourth generation iPhone – despite several high profile ‘sightings.’
Historically Apple’s ultra-secret approach has succeeded in building buzz ahead of the official launch. A year ago Apple used the same strategy ahead of the launch of the iPhone 3GS which cast a shadow over another smartphone sales debut: That time it was the Palm Pre which went on sale 48 hours ahead of its rival and was, coincidentally, also initially a Sprint network exclusive.
