iPhone 5 calendar flip: what Verizon and Apple already knew in 2010

In the great calendar flip of 2011, the iPhone 5 is arriving later than its expected summer release date. Now the question emerges of whether this was a last minute switcheroo or whether Apple (and for that matter Verizon) knew all along that this was coming and planned accordingly. The two companies raised eyebrows earlier this year when they introduced a Verizon iPhone 4 at a time when most thought the iPhone 4 era was about three-quarters over according to the calendar. After all, Apple always introduces a new iPhone generation in the summer, so the notion of the iPhone 4 expanding to another carrier just a few months before the launch of the iPhone 5 stood out as being peculiar at the least. Now that the white iPhone 4 arrival means the iPhone 5 is indeed unlikely to be seen until the fall, the essential question emerges of whether Apple and Verizon knew the iPhone 5 was going to be a latecomer back when they struck the iPhone 4 deal, and whether that matters in the scheme of things. Still, the implications either way are notable.

For starters, let's assume that Apple has known for some time that the iPhone 5 wouldn't be coming until fall 2011. Upon sharing that information with new partner Verizon, the carrier then asked for a Verizon-compatible iPhone 4 in the mean time. Launching such a product would be tricky, as many would assume that a Verizon iPhone 5 would roll out in the summer and would therefore wait for it, skipping the Verizon iPhone 4. But it would the smart move because the other option would be to have no Verizon iPhone on the market until late 2011. But in this scenario, the question is why Apple would have made up its mind so long ago that the iPhone 5 would be a late bloomer. That would decision would have to have been made long before the Verizon iPhone 4 launch, perhaps as far back as last year. Did Apple simply change its mind about the summer being a good time of year for an iPhone launch? Or could Apple have known that far in advance that its grand plans for the iPhone 5 (whatever they are) would take longer than usual to pull together, either from a design or component standpoint. Then there's the issue of whether Apple plans to include 4G in the iPhone 5g and is simply attempting to give Verizon and AT&T time to catch up in that department before launching.

Then there's the other scenario in which Apple and Verizon did originally launch the Verizon iPhone 4 with the expectation that it would go by the wayside as soon as June 2011. An odd move, launching a new product which would be gone in a few months – but not completely gone, as the Verizon iPhone 4 is expected to take its place as the sub-$100 Verizon model (as AT&T is doing now with the iPhone 3GS) once the iPhone 5 arrives. So if a Verizon iPhone 4 model was going to be needed eventually, perhaps the two companies figured it was a good idea to go ahead and get it out there ASAP even though there would inevitably be those Verizon customers who would feel blown back by having been sold a "new" model which would soon be replaced in its flagship role. Assuming this is how things plays out, the question is what recently blew up Apple's iPhone 5 plans – then again, that's essentially the same question as above. Here's more on the iPhone5.