Apple sending A5-powered ‘iPhone 4S’ to game developers

April 22, 2011 By Andrew Couts

In a sign that gaming will play a central role in Apple's iPhone 5 plans, Cupertino has reportedly given mobile game developers prototype iPhone units loaded with the speedy A5 processor.

Apple has reportedly provided game app developers with prototype iPhone models powered by the super-fast A5 processor, according to a source who spoke with 9to5Mac. The A5, which comes loaded in the iPad 2, is expected to be part of the iPhone 5 upgrade.

According to the rumor’s unnamed source, the iPhone units provided to developers looks “virtually identical” to the iPhone 4, says 9to5Mac. The resemblance is so uncanny, in fact, that “there is no way anyone can tell it’s not an iPhone 4 based on the phone’s exterior.” Because of this, the devs have apparently nicknamed the device the ‘iPhone 4S.’

As we have repeatedly heard in the past, the iPhone 5 is not expected to receive a major redesign from that of the iPhone 4, instead opting for a revamp of the internal variety, which includes swapping out the A4 for its fast, younger sibling.

This does not, however, mean that the phone given to the devs is the iPhone 5 — it’s most likely not. Still, the iPhone units are said to be kept in safes at the developers’ offices at night to avoid theft (or, quite possibly, another debacle like last year’s lost “stolen” iPhone 4).

The risk of doling out prototypes is well worth the risk for Apple, as it enables the company to make the most of its next-generation smartphone’s gaming faculties. Part of the A5′s increased computing capabilities is a significant boost in gaming performance over that of the A4. This is why Apple has these developers, who are “seemingly from high-level gaming outfits,” hard at work.

According to a recent report, Apple’s iOS mobile operating system has become an increasingly popular gaming platform. In 2009, Apple nabbed 19 percent of the portable gaming market. The next year iOS and Google’s Android OS accounted for 34 percent of the market, which significantly cut down on the dominance of the Nintendo DS.

In addition to an upgrade to the A5 processor, the iPhone 5 is expected to include an 8 megapixel camera (up from 5MP in the iPhone 4), and could be available with 64GB of internal storage, double the maximum size of the iPhone 4. Reports indicate that the next-gen iPhone will ship in September.

Showing 6 comments

Greg Vernon at 2:54pm 22nd April 2011 Considering that the iPhone just blew away all analysts expectations by becoming the fastest-selling device on the Verizon network while showing almost 0 attrition on the AT&T network and pushing Apple to a 95% rise in profit margin, I'd say there's plenty of people who DO get it. But Jaime will keep showing off his phone that's named after 70s movies and TV shows (Droid Bionic? When does the R2 Steve Austin come out, nerds?) and thinking that the average consumer gives a sh*t.
Greg Vernon at 2:50pm 22nd April 2011 Put more accurately, different flavors of Android run flash to varying degrees of success depending on the quality of the hardware, most consistently resulting in feeble battery life which cannot hold a candle to that of either iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. But I guess that is only important if you're not an Android geek.
Bryan at 8:54am 22nd April 2011 Android runs flash. But I guess that is only important if you want to use the entire internet.
rattyuk at 6:55am 22nd April 2011 So the Droid bionic has the graphics processing of the A5 chip? What you don't understand is that the Bionic is a single branch off the Android fork. Whereas the next iPhone will be the next iPhone. Apps written for it will run on all iPhones... So keep waving your flags but you don't actually get it.
daveberdstorm at 6:03am 22nd April 2011 I guess the real question is: How much better is this processor/phone (the whole package) than all the "android" processor/phones added together? Answer will hopefully be in next article so us apple geniuses can finally get some rest. I have been "flaming" (whatever than means) for 3 years now.
1. jaime at 6:16am 22nd April 2011 Look up Droid bionic. That can put you to rest for good