PCMag.Com - Rumors about the next iPhone have been circulating ever since the last one came out. There have been a lot, but besides the many supposed features it'll have, there's been some debate about whether it will be called iPhone 5 or iPhone 4S. Now the word on the street is that both are correct—that Apple will actually release two new iPhones in the fall, one being a completely redesigned model that will remain the flagship phone, and the other a cheaper, lower-end model that would be more like a cousin of the current iPhone 4.The rumor is actually not much more than educated speculation from an industry analyst, Chris Whitmore of Deutsche Bank. That alone is enough to put the plan in the "questionable" bin. On top of that, though, such a move just seems out of character for Apple. Since its inception, the iPhone has always been "The iPhone." Apple's mobile product philosophy is pretty clearly a "one size fits all" strategy, releasing just one phone per year. Much like the tagline for the Highlander movies, for the iPhone, there can be only one.
iPhone Fragmentation
A split iPhone 5/4S launch shatters that apparent strategy. But, looking at the whole picture of Apple's recent actions, it does make some sense. While the standard case for a cheaper iPhone—that it would open the company up to new markets—has been true since the iPhone first debuted, it now matches with what Apple's been doing: getting serious about going global. More
