Report: iPhone 5 To Be Unveiled October 4th

Mark your calendars, iPhone fans. According to AllThingsD, “sources close to the situation” say Apple’s new CEO Tim Cook will debut the iPhone 5 on October 4th. The report goes on to say that the iPhone 5 will go on sale within a few weeks of the announcement. 

As you might expect, the focus will be on the device’s new design and capabilities, including a supposedly sleeker tapered shape, enlarged gesture area, and sharper camera. But just as many eyes will be on Tim Cook to see how he performs relative to Steve Jobs. This is his chance to show the world that he’s confident and in complete control of the world’s most powerful tech company.

Just as with previous Apple events, Cook will likely have a strong supporting cast, including Scott Forstall (head of iOS) and Eddy Cue (who now runs iCloud). Marketing head Phil Schiller will also probably play a role. And while it’s certainly possible Steve Jobs could make a cameo, we wouldn’t count on it.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions about the iPhone 5, especially in terms of special features that will make this handset stand out against the Android competition. Will it have speech recognition capabilities? Will it lack 4G support? And what about NFC for mobile payments? Will it launch on AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint all at the same time as expected?

We’ll know the answers to all of these questions—including whether that Oct. 4th date is right—soon enough.

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