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The on-again off-again rumors around Apple including Near Field Communications (NFC) in the next iteration of the iPhone took an off-again turn this morning in a research note from Bernstein, courtesy of Business Insider. According to the report, Bernstein analysts claim that the next iPhone will not have mobile payment support via NFC. From Business Insider:
Apple's next iPhone, said to be called the 4S, will not have the mobile payment support through NFC (near field communication) says Bernstein in a note this morning.
We don't have the full note, just highlights from a Bloomberg terminal.
NFC in the iPhone would allow users to pay for things by waving their phone at the register or get airline tickets electronically and check in with a wave of the iPhone. The technology has not, however, taken off yet in the United States to the degree that it has in other areas of the world, and Apple may still see the inclusion of NFC capabilities in the iPhone as premature for either technical or logistical reasons.
Most indications suggest the next version of the iPhone, rumored to be called the iPhone 4S, won't be a sea-change device like the jump from the iPhone 3GS to the iPhone 4 was, although the inclusion of NFC could be an important enhancement should Apple choose to adopt it. Rumors of Apple including NFC in the next iPhone have been the subject of a seemingly endless back-and-forth, and while it appears that NFC will be included in some future iPhone revision, there is scant evidence that the next-generation iPhone in particular will have the technology. The New York Times claimed in March that Apple will include NFC in a "coming iteration" of the iPhone, but stopped short of declaring when that inclusion is scheduled to take place.
Top Rated Comments
I hate to break it to ya bud. The iPhone 4S is the iPhone 5. I don't understand how everyone is so confused.
iPhone -> iPhone 3G(because 3G network) -> iPhone 3GS(same but added speed) - iPhone 4 (because the 4th gen iPhone)
Even if they do release an iPhone 4S (for speed) the next one would be an iPhone 6. Or an iPhone LTE. Or an iPhone NFC. Or an iPhone nano-ray.
It would most certainly not be call iPhone 5 when it is the 6th generation. Sorry, ppl's ignorance on this topic bugs me. Especially ppl that should know better
I don't see the average chit-chat obsessed nit-wit having the presence of mind to detach the phone from the side of their head any faster than they can dig a card out of their sack.
P.S. For you nit-picky types, I know that NFC isn't really a sensor, but I still think it fits the same basic pattern.
Hmmm lemme think. even assuming the iphone retains 100% of its dimensions, no NFC, and no LTE I can still think of...
More RAM (1GB)
Faster, dual core processor (A5)
longer battery life
8.0 Megapixel camera
HD facetime camera
HSPA+ (a 4G network) support
combined chip to accomodate VZ and at&t (amoung others internationally)
sprint & t-mobile support (for US)
Louder speakers
improved reception
More profit (you can't stop releasing products just because there is no dramatic technology to unveil. ppl would stop buying iPhones)
Those are just a few things that I thought up, based on some assumptions. I'm sure Apple can add even more than that
The fact is the USA is years behind in cell phone technology compared to Asia and Europe.