iPhone 5 Release Date, iPad Mini And New MacBook Pro: This Week In Apple Rumors

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Apple, Ipad Mini, iPhone 5, Iphone 5 Release Date, Iphone 5 Rumors, Iphone Release Date, New iPhone Release Date, New Macbook Pro, New Macbook Pro Release Date, Slideexpand, Photo Galleries, Technology News

Every week the numerous blogs covering the machinations of the Apple empire float unconfirmed rumors, blatant speculation and questionably-sourced reports on what the company might be unveiling in the near or distant future. Let's take a look back at what the Apple blogs were excited about during the week of May 13 - 19. Check out our last edition of Apple rumors here, and for all the latest follow me on Twitter right here.

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The iPhone 5 Will Have A Larger Screen: Wall Street Journal
READERS: I hope you like iPhone 5 rumors, because there were a whole lot of them this week -- some of them even coming from reputable sources that you might be able to trust! Can you believe it? Up is down, down is up! Cats and dogs living together...mass hysteria! Let's start at the Wall Street Journal, a publication that Apple loves with all its heart and <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2012/02/16/behind-apples-mountain-lion-with-tim-cook/" target="_hplink">has been giving inside access to lately</a>. <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303360504577407610487811698.html" target="_hplink">Here's the paper</a>, citing "people with familiar with the matter": <blockquote>The new iPhone that Apple Inc. is expected to unveil this year is likely to have a larger display than its current models have, with the company ordering bigger screens from its Asian suppliers... The new screens measure at least 4 inches diagonally...</blockquote> That bigger iPhone is expected to land some time in the fall, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303360504577407610487811698.html" target="_hplink">according to the Wall Street Journal's sources</a>. Now, the Wall Street Journal isn't exactly filled with hacks, but let's fact-check the Murdoch-owned paper on its past Apple rumors anyway: In February 2011, the WSJ <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704657104576142262842435544.html" target="_hplink">claimed Apple</a> was working on a "less-pricey" iPhone for emerging markets; that one still hasn't emerged. Otherwise, the Journal has been solid on Apple rumors: It was correct in <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903596904576517674178129628.html" target="_hplink">predicting an early 2012 launch for a new iPad</a> with a Retina display screen; it was <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/apple-making-verizon-ready-iphone-by-year-end-wsj-2010-10-06-1421160?siteid=yhoof2" target="_hplink">mostly correct</a> in its report of an impending Verizon iPhone back in 2010 (missed the release date by a couple months); it was one of few publications to <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303544604576429292482910586.html" target="_hplink">correctly predict that</a> Apple would not change the design of the iPhone 4 for the iPhone 4S; and it also <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903327904576526690675657466.html" target="_hplink">broke the news that</a> Sprint would begin selling the iPhone starting with the iPhone 4S this past October. In other words, it is more trustworthy than, say, <a href="http://techland.time.com/2012/05/14/digitimes-apple-rumors/" target="_hplink">Digitimes</a>. Or <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/17/james-okeefe-voter-fraud-video_n_1524146.html" target="_hplink">James O'Keefe</a>. But the Journal wasn't the only creditable publication with trustworthy sources whispering to it about the next iPhone. Within hours of the WSJ's report, we got another iPhone 5 rumor from Reuters, which said...
Really, The iPhone 5 Will Be Bigger Than The iPhone 4S: Reuters
It wasn't even two months ago that a <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/22/us-apple-iphone-idUSBRE82L01G20120322" target="_hplink">Reuters iPhone 5 rumor claimed that the next Apple smartphone</a> would a sport an enormous 4.6-inch display. So, it's a bit surprising that Reuters is back with ANOTHER iPhone 5 rumor, THIS time <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/17/us-apple-iphone-idUSBRE84F0MA20120517" target="_hplink">alleging that the next iPhone will have a 4-inch display</a>. So, which one is correct? Maybe Reuters is just going to publish a new iPhone 5 rumor from "trusted sources" every month until the thing is actually released, with a different screen size in every headline. JUNE: "Next iPhone Will Have 4.1-inch display: Sources" JULY: "Next iPhone Will Have 4.2-inch Display: Sources" AUGUST: "Next iPhone Will Have 4.3-inch Display: Sources" And so on and so forth. That way Reuters can say that it totally called the display size of the next iPhone. Nailed it. "Remember that report from [INSERT WINNING MONTH HERE]?" it'll say. For now, let's assume the newest report from Reuters is right, since most of the chatter surrounding the next iPhone puts its display size at 4-inches, corner-to-corner. The generally-reliable Wall Street Journal also posited the existence of 4-inch displays, and now Reuters is backing those claims up. Unless something changes between now and October, your best bet is that the iPhone 5 will indeed have a 4-inch screen. And that's just based on this week's batch of reporting from America's respected news orgs. Because it's not just the Journal and Reuters with articles about a larger iPhone from this week; Bloomberg has one, too...
No, Seriously, You Guys, The iPhone 5 Is GOING To Have A Larger Screen Than The Old iPhone: Bloomberg
Why let the WSJ and Reuters have all the fun? Bloomberg <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-17/apple-said-to-plan-overhaul-of-iphone-with-bigger-screen.html" target="_hplink">broke into the Apple rumor game with an article on Wednesday</a> titled "Apple Said To Plan Overhaul Of IPhone With Bigger Screen." Here's the beef of that brief: - "Apple...is preparing to overhaul the look of its iPhone, three people with knowledge of the plans said, refreshing the company's top-selling product amid competition from rivals such as Samsung." - "Apple, based in Cupertino, California, has placed orders from suppliers in Asia for screens that are bigger than the 3.5- inch size now on the smartphone, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had worked closely on the redesigned phone before his death in October, one person said." Excelente, Bloombito. Bloomberg is fairly responsible about publishing Apple rumors -- check its measured (and correct) predictions <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-22/apple-said-to-prepare-faster-iphone-for-september.html" target="_hplink">for the iPhone 4S</a> and <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-13/apple-said-to-prepare-march-ipad-3-debut-with-sharper-screen-faster-chip.html" target="_hplink">iPad 3</a> before each came out. Reuters, Bloomberg, and the Wall Street Journal all think that the next iPhone is going to get a 4-inch screen when it is released in October, in other words. You should probably think that, too: Those are three heavy-hitters who aren't going to publish an article unless they're really confident about its accuracy. Again, they're not Digitimes. Or James O'Keefe. And all three of them heard the exact same thing within three days of each other. Five months out, a next-generation iPhone seems inevitable. What might that look like? Hope you like mock-ups! NEXT SLIDE --
And Here's What That Larger iPhone Might Look Like: MacRumors
The natural reaction to news that the iPhone might get a larger 4-inch screen? Make a mock-up! MacRumors did just that, commissioning the prolific Ciccarese Design to create this beautiful design. As you can see, the new iPhone with the four inch screen is taller than the iPhone 4S, and another row of icons has been added to the homescreen. That's speculative, of course -- but really, what isn't in the world of Apple blogs? Ciccarese also <a href="http://images.macrumors.com/article-new/2012/05/iphone5.html" target="_hplink">produced this interactive 3D model</a> of the 4-inch iPhone, which you can spin around with your cursor. Fun! Also fun, with lots of mock-ups to go along with it: The iPad Mini, that 7.85-inch Kindle Fire-killer that Apple is rumored to be working on. Let's check in on that little unicorn, shall we?
iPad Mini Coming In Late 2012: Barclays/Taiwanese Newspaper
Two out of two publications writing about the iPad Mini agree: A 7-inch iPad is coming out toward the end of 2012. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/7-inch-ipad-coming-this-fall-barclays-says-2012-5" target="_hplink">Business Insider published a research note</a> from Barclay's, in which the authoring analysts announce that "recent research" tells them that a smaller iPad "in the 7'' range" is coming this fall. In a totally separate story, across an ocean, Taiwanese newspaper Liberty Times (with translation by Macotakara) reports that LG and AU Optronics have gotten the go-ahead from Apple to begin mass-producing displays for an iPad Mini. No word on screen size, but the Liberty Times -- which is publishing perhaps its first Apple rumor ever (congrats, and welcome to the dark side) -- <a href="http://www.macotakara.jp/blog/index.php?ID=16598" target="_hplink">claims the device</a> will come out in Q3 or Q4 of 2012 (that would be between July and December). It's not much to bet your lunch money on, but it does seem like we hear a new iPad Mini rumor every week here. The momentum is building for this miniaturized iPad, though I still haven't seen anything solid enough to indicate that it's definitely happened.
Thinner, Faster 15-Inch MacBook Pro Coming Soon: 9to5Mac
<a href="http://9to5mac.com/2012/05/14/apple-readies-revamped-15-inch-macbook-pro-retina-display-ultra-thin-design-and-super-fast-usb-3-3/" target="_hplink">9to5Mac has a bunch of details</a> on what it says is the next-generation MacBook Pro, to be released in the summertime. The reputable Apple blog claims that a Retina display is coming to the Pro, as is a thinner body, a faster USB 3.0 connection, and -- are you ready for this? -- a power button on the keyboard rather than on the device itself. To achieve a thinner body, 9to5Mac hears that Apple is ditching the optical (CD-ROM) drive. Viva la Netflix! For much more on the new MacBook Pro, and lots of pretty mock-ups (MOCK-UPS!), make sure you <a href="http://9to5mac.com/2012/05/14/apple-readies-revamped-15-inch-macbook-pro-retina-display-ultra-thin-design-and-super-fast-usb-3-3/" target="_hplink">check out 9to5Mac's special report</a>. And that, my friends, brings us to the end of This Week In Apple Rumors. Make sure you check back next week, when Reuters will predict that the next iPhone will have 4.0000001 inch display. If you can't wait a week for your fix, you can get all the latest Apple rumors by <a href="http://twitter.com/gilbertjasono" target="_hplink">following me on Twitter here</a>.