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Apple’s new iPhone apparently won’t be paired with a speedier next-generation wireless network.
Apple
The upcoming smartphone won’t have access to the Long-Term Evolution or WiMax 4G networks that are available in the U.S., according to the Dow Jones Newswires. That will likely come as a disappointment to many who were hoping that the device would wed Apple’s software and experience with a much faster data connection.
Apple plans to unveil the device at 10 a.m. PT today.
That the iPhone will run on 3G speeds only isn’t a huge surprise. Tim Cook, Apple’s new CEO, said earlier this year that the integration of LTE technology would require too many compromises for now–including a larger battery drain and the need for a bigger case–and that Apple would look to it in future iterations. WiMax, meanwhile, is a niche technology that even Sprint Nextel is moving away from, so it wouldn’t make sense for Apple to invest in it now.
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Still, a rumor floated by BGR said that the next iPhone 5 would be an exclusive to Sprint and run on the WiMax network.
The iPhone is expected to run on AT&T’s HSPA+ network, which the carrier has taken to calling 4G, even though the speeds aren’t comparable to LTE.
Sprint has sold phones running on WiMax for more than a year now, while Verizon Wireless began selling its own LTE phone early this year. AT&T recently launched its LTE network in five cities.
