NYT joins in with iPhone 4 for Verizon

Yet another new source stated on Friday that the iPhone would reach Verizon. The model seen would be a straightforward port and would be sold through both Apple and Verizon stores early into 2011. The New York Times' insider, who reportedly had direct access to Apple, didn't corroborate talk of whether it would use a Qualcomm chip, though Qualcomm's dominance of CDMA makes it very probable.

While Apple has simply declined to comment, Verizon has become increasingly vague in its responses and neither explicitly confirming nor denying that plans exist. At the CTIA phone show this week, Verizon executives wouldn't address the question directly and even put the onus on Apple. When asked if the iPhone would be part of the 4G phone launch at CES, Verizon's wireless chief Lowell McAdam dodged the question in either direction.

Most anticipate a Verizon iPhone to have just EVDO-based 3G for data. Verizon's LTE 4G network will reach just 38 cities when it goes live, making 4G impractical as the iPhone would often never use the faster speed. LTE chipsets also often take up extra space inside a device and consume extra battery power.

CDMA was once dismissed as "dead" by Apple for its limited reach; the GSM iPhone limited Apple's choices of carriers in the US but also gave it a single device that it could sell around the world. The rapid rise of Android is widely believed to have changed the company's mind, as the lack of a CDMA model has given Google safe haven at Sprint and Verizon, where Android has seen some of the heaviest promotion.

By Electronista Staff