Tech lovers who eagerly await the newest products on the market may be preparing to line up at the Apple store, as the company is rumored to announce the release of its next generation iPhone on Wednesday.

Apple sent out invitations for a product-release event that will be held Wednesday and, due to the number five in the background, it is widely assumed that Apple will announce the release of the next generation iPhone.

This release could not have come at a better time for Apple, due to the success of its competition, said David Molta, director of the School of Information Studies at Syracuse University.

“For techies who really want high-speed data, Android has been just a much more powerful platform and Apple hasn’t had a great story to tell,” Molta said.

He said these possible changes will help Apple stand up better against its competition. Two of the most anticipated changes in the iPhone 5, Molta said, are the larger 4-inch screen and a longer-lasting battery.

“By making the iPhone bigger, I think what they are also trying to do is provide more space for the battery, and you add more powerful batteries so that they can add reasonable battery life,” Molta said.

Other new functions of the iPhone 5, he said, may include a thinner display, a new charger — similar to that of a MacBook — and a headphone port on the bottom of the phone. One of the changes that Molta said interests him the most is the phone’s wireless aspect.

“I’m anticipating that they will have a 4G radio that supports a standard called LTE. It’s like the latest, greatest cellular data standard,” said Molta.

Molta said he also anticipates changes in the Wi-Fi adapter, bringing the iPhone up to speed with other smartphones on the market.

He said a limitation with the current iPhone is that it operates on the same 2.4-gigahertz frequency band. Newer products, like the iPad and the most recent Android phones, also have the option of utilizing the much more spacious 5-gigahertz frequency band. Overcrowding on a frequency band causes the Wi-Fi to work slower, which Molta said is a problem, especially at SU.

On campus, the current generations of iPhone are very popular, but reactions are mixed on the need for an improved product.

Shamini Rajendran, a freshman aerospace engineering major who has an iPhone 4S, said she is very pleased with the product, but would prefer the newest model. But Rajendran said she will not buy it because her cellphone plan won’t cover the expense.

“I wanted to get the new iPhone just because it’s newer and better,” she said.

Other students on campus, like Fatin Marzooq, a junior chemical engineering major, are not as eager for the release of the iPhone 5 because they don’t anticipate any significant changes.

“I feel like it’s just going to be another iPhone,” she said. “They’re all pretty much the same except they’re faster and they look slightly different. They just change minor things.”

But until Apple actually releases the product, it’s tough to tell whether consumers will upgrade their phones.

The Apple Store in Syracuse, in accordance with company policy, declined to comment on the release of any products not currently in the store.

Published on September 11, 2012 at 1:50 am

Contact Andrew: amfeld01@syr.edu