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Will Apple release an iPhone '4S', iPhone '5' or both?

With the invitation (right) now sent to the tech press for an iPhone-focused event on 4 October, I can say I was mostly right and a little bit wrong with my predictions on the release of a new iPhone. From my August 16th post: 

"Apple will announce the new iPhone in September. The have indeed had a media event EVERY Septmber for the last six years: 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006,2005. OK, it might not be on September 7th...

"This September announcement will have an immediate impact on iPhone 4 sales. Every newspaper in the world, pretty much, will report this unveiling. 

"The new phone will then go on sale in October. Worldwide. Boom."

Apple's invitation clearly signals a new iPhone, but at this time we don't know what it will be like.

I believe this post by John Gruber that suggests if Apple could have had more news to share in September, they would have, it's just taken longer than planned.

If Apple could have made its iPhone announcement this month — September — I think they would have. I think they went into October because it took longer to get everything in order: hardware production, iOS 5, iCloud. 

Because Apple never publicises its plans, nobody can criticise (does that make sense, RIM CEOs?)

More interestingly, we don't know if there'll be one new iPhone (and the invitation can be interpreted that way), or whether there'll be two.  

Rumours, lovely rumours, offer two theories:

1. Apple will release a brand new 'iPhone 5', featuring the design that 'leaked' a while back (right). It will have an A5 processor, bigger screen, bigger batttery (to help offset the other upgrades' power needs), 8MP camera and will be slimmer (über important!). I like the idea of this iPhone 5. It looks great, up to date, and can easily hold a fight with the newest Android slabs.
   
   As part of this event, Apple will release a reengineered iPhone 4, that's cheaper and thus will allow Apple to hit lower end markets, with a great product, hit back at the glut of cheap Android phones, and provide an incredible product for that market place. There have been clues to this strategy.
   
   
2. Apple will simply release an upgraded iPhone '4s', much like the 3GS, which is still faster with an A5 chip,8PM camera and possibly cheaper to manufacture, but it will still be the same design.
   
   The focus of the event next week will be on this upgraded phone, and iOS 5 which will launch around the same time.
   
   They could also drop the price of the iPhone 3GS to be very low (must be super cheap to make now, considering it didn't cost much originally), and that will provide the low-cost option, perhaps even for pre-paid.

Hmmmmm.

I'll be honest and say I would love to see a cheaper iPhone 4, and a brand new iPhone 5 in the design mockups we've seen (theory #1). But there's a lot of talk to suggest that won't be the case, and theory #2 is more likely. 

If we do see a genuine iPhone 5, I'll certainly be a happy camper. 

If we only see a warmed up iPhone 4s, well, I think my next phone will not be an iPhone.

Apple has drawn this release out very long. The Google-led competition, with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S2 and Note, not to mention the pending release of the Samsung Nexus Prime a week after the Apple event, are leaving any potential iPhone '4s' in the dust. It just wouldn't cut it for me, even with 'iCloud'. 

So, we'll see. Don't you love speculation? I'll leave you with the fact that if there's only an iPhone 4s, that's going to be a rather weak launch event for Apple's newly minted CEO. That's probably the only thing that's making me think a proper iPhone 5 (theory #1) could be on the cards.

September articles from Step Two Designs: Commenting on news / Helping intranet authors write quality content

We've just published our latest articles on the Step Two Designs site. This month: 

• Enable commenting on intranet news by James Robertson
• Helping intranet authors write quality content by Rebecca Rodgers

As ever, all articles are free to read and download as PDFs. We'd love to hear your thoughts!

[Article archive]

Intranet design workshops in London, Washington DC and New York, by Step Two Designs

In October and November this year you can catch Step Two Designs intranet workshops in London, Washington DC and New York. Here are the details: 

Intranet Design: creating sites that work - Washington DC, October 31, 20011 by Rebecca Rodgers

This workshop is part of KM World's extensive 2011 event, held in DC 31 October 31-November 3, 2011.

Intranet Design: creating sites that work - New York City, November 9, 20011 by Rebecca Rodgers

This workshop is part of the 2011 Intranet Global Forum. You can get 25% off the registration fee if you register before 7th October. 

Intranet Design: creating sites that work - London, October 17, 20011 by James Robertson

See full details of the London workshop over on the Step Two Designs site, or register online. 

Here's a synopsis of the workshop:

The biggest complaint from staff in many organisations: I can’t find anything on the intranet! If intranets aren’t easy to use, with great navigation and search, there’s little point in having them. To ensure that new or redesigned intranets really are easy to use, we need to involve staff in the design process.

Delivering a great intranet involves following a best-practice methodology that uses structured techniques to research and test with staff. Taking this "user-centred design" approach to the intranet gives teams a range of practical usability techniques that get beyond opinions and arguments.

Techniques covered during the workshop include card sorting, tree testing, and usability testing. Hands-on activities with a number of these key techniques ensures you will walk away with practical skills that can be immediately put into practice. You’ll also receive detailed how-to guides on intranet design techniques.

One of the greatest challenges for intranet teams is how hard it is to see other intranets, and to uncover design ideas. The workshop will share many examples, as well as screenshots of good designs, providing a wealth of ideas to draw upon.

* KM World 2011 (Washington DC workshop)

* 2011 Intranet Global Forum (NYC workshop)

* Step Two Designs (London workshop)

Gamers achieve what computer algorithms cannot

This is not the first story of its kind:

AIDS researchers struggling to unlock the structure of a key enzyme received a helping hand from an unlikley source: thousands of amateurs playing an Internet game called Foldit. 

By using a game developed by researchers at the University of Washington, players were able to come up with a viable structure for a protein that is crucial to the early development of AIDS . Foldit allows users to assemble potential proteins out of different molecular building blocks, and video game players ended up accomplishing what scientists could not.

"People have spatial reasoning skills, something computers are not yet good at," Seth Cooper, a University of Washington computer scientist who is Foldit's lead designer and developer, said in a news release. "Games provide a framework for bringing together the strengths of computers and humans."

This is exactly the sort of application of games that Jane McGonigal talks about in her fascinating book, 'Reality is Broken' and her various TED talks. 

[Fold.it via International Business Times]

Traditional and social components are creating 'two speed intranets'

James Robertson in a great article on Intranets Today: 

Alongside brand-new "social intranets" are traditional intranets still focusing on the fundamentals.
What we're seeing is a landscape of two-speed intranets. While there is plenty of overlap between the go-fast and go-slow intranets, there are also many differences. If we're to close the gaps, we need to recognize that there is no one-size- fits-all approach.

[Intranets Today]

'Wikis' and 'blogs' are dead

James Robertson:

Both wikis and blogs sell a technology. They are fundamentally geeky tools, alongside RSS and personalisation. The majority of staff don’t really understand them, beyond a vague familiarity with the name.

I have to agree, in the enterprise context and quite possibly elsewhere. These days such terms are absolutely useless, and irrelevant. Plus, not only are they vague and unhelpful, but they carry baggage that is often venomous to success. 

[James Robertson]

Samsung Galaxy Note: big screen phone or small screen tablet?

I don't care, because it sure looks rather nice. 5.7" screen, latest version of Android (apparently a bit laggy on the Note prototypes), pen input so it's a useful notetaker (in theory), slim, light... pretty smart overall. 

As much as I'm pining for the soon-to-be-released iPhone 4s / 5, Apple's predictable failure to wage war in the smartphone arms race, plus their insistence on pushing out release cycles to beyond a year, does make your eyes wander from time to time.

[Sydney Morning Herald]