Last minute rumor: iPhone 5 won’t have LTE or WiMax, but will have HSPA+

October 4, 2011 By Jeffrey Van Camp

New rumors suggest Apple's next iPhone may not have 4G LTE or WiMax support on Verizon and Sprint.

Apple’s official “Let’s talk iPhone” event is only a couple hours away, but the rumor mill is still churning. An hour or so ago, the WSJ reported that the next iPhone will not support Sprint or Verizon’s 4G networks. Despite there being a plethora of Android phones on Verizon’s high-speed LTE network and Sprint’s somewhat speedy WiMax network, the iPhone may not support the technologies. Why? Probably for the same reason it took Apple a year to support 3G: it doesn’t see the technology as stable enough. It will, however, support AT&T’s beefed up 3G network, which runs on a technology called HSPA+.

And that’s all we know so far. The decision to wait a year could hurt its sales on Verizon and Sprint, but will have no impact on Apple’s carrier of choice: AT&T, which hasn’t yet launched its 4G LTE network, but will have it up and running by next year.

Of course, Apple may announce two iPhones today, one of which may have 4G while the other doesn’t. We’ll have more information in a little while.

Showing 13 comments

fgoodwin at 1:46pm 5th October 2011 Isn't T-Mobile's network HSPA+ ? Maybe this is the miracle T-Mo needs to survive independent of AT&T.
jesterking at 12:49pm 4th October 2011 Again... kill'n me with the Rumor mill. All you are doing is being a free advertisement for Apple... Don't whore yourself out like that. You should at least get some money for it... or do you?
1. Jeffrey Van Camp at 2:55pm 4th October 2011 Ha. Well, we get ad views if people like to read this stuff. Unfortunately, lots of people want to hear about Apple, but the rumor mill should subside for a bit here.
Brandon Eaker at 8:52am 4th October 2011 Grr my other comment is "awaiting moderation". Talking at Macworld Asia, state-owned Chinese carrier China Unicom claims that Apple's iPhone 5 will run on suppafast HSPA+ networks. It's not LTE, but that's a 3x increase: a maximum download speed of 21Mbps compared to the current 7.2Mbps.I don't expect the faster, true 4G LTE to be supported by the next-generation iPhone. The technology has been ignored by Apple so far because it would make the iPhone too thick and consume too much battery.
Abdul Rahman Haroon at 3:51pm 4th October 2011 when its coming out?
Mike Dunn at 8:44am 4th October 2011 If the rumors about it being thinner are true than an LTE version most likely isn't in the cards. I can see them keeping it thin with a WiMax antenna though. We'll see, I've taken the Sprint exclusive rumor hook line and sinker, so I'm expecting some WiMax today.
Sean Michael Parmenter at 3:44pm 4th October 2011 Aw! Why so many 4g formats! Uhg!
Brandon Eaker at 8:35am 4th October 2011 Where were you guys? this was reported like a week or two ago. They aren't gonna do LTE because it would make the iPhone too bulky and apparently it takes too much power. But it will have a maximum download speed of 21Mbps compared to the current 7.2Mbps.http://gizmodo.com/5845078/the-iphone-5s-internet-is-three-times-faster-says-chinese-carrier
1. Ian Bell at 8:59am 4th October 2011 haha we can't quote Gizmodo on the site, we have to wait till legit sources reported on it!
Kong Decky at 3:33pm 4th October 2011 good product,simple praktis
Andrew Couts at 8:31am 4th October 2011 If this is true, it seems like a terrible idea. I was planning to get the next iPhone. But I have Verizon, and if some customers get 4G and I don't, I'll likely skip out, just on principle.
Cesar Garcia at 3:28pm 4th October 2011 @Nick http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/04/apples-lets-talk-iphone-keynote-liveblog/
Nick Garrett at 3:24pm 4th October 2011 where is a good spot to get instant updates from the conference