This summer, Apple is expected to launch its next iPhone, and new reports describe it as a "completely redesigned handset" as well as a "total rethink from a design standpoint." To start, the iPhone 5's internals will be different - the device will run on a new, combined CDMA/GSM/UTMS chipset from Qualcomm, which will support both AT&T and Verizon here in the U.S., as well as other carriers worldwide - perhaps even an expanded lineup, as would now be possible. Along with the iPad 2, this chipset change represents the transition away from Infineon as the iPhone and iPad chipset maker. Going forward, Qualcomm will make the chips for all Apple mobile devices.
But as of this morning, it seems that the most notable thing about the iPhone 5 is not a sum of its features but the fact that it will be a major iPhone launch that will occur without Steve Jobs' daily presence. Although the ailing Apple CEO stated via press release this a.m. that he will continue his role during his medical absence, COO Tim Cook will be in charge of day-to-day operations at Apple.
Consider the iPhone 5's 2011 launch as Apple's dry run for a future without Steve Jobs at the helm. Can it still be "magical?"
From the sound of the note, there's no reason to expect this is any short-term illness for Jobs. He writes that "Tim and the rest of the executive management team will do a terrific job executing the exciting plans we have in place for 2011" so he can focus on his health. Jobs previously had pancreatic cancer and received a liver transplant in 2009, so this news is not surprising. However, it's decidedly upsetting, both from a financial point of view and from the point of view from of someone who has upheld the CEO as one of our era's greatest visionaries.
But for now, let's just focus on the iPhone 5. Without Jobs' daily involvement, Apple execs may be launching the most impressive device yet, if our suspicions play out.
