Though there is apparently an iPhone heading to Verizon, and in all likelihood, a new model iPhone next summer, neither model will run on any wireless carriers' 4G networks, according to a report in TechCrunch today.
The post cites "sources" that say that the iPhone Apple is making with CDMA chips won't support the Long Term Evolution, or LTE 4G standard, and neither will the iPhone 5 -- or whatever Apple calls the next-generation device it builds. CDMA is the the wireless technology used by Verizon and Sprint.
That's because, according to the report, Apple doesn't want to have to work with the first round of LTE chips and is concerned that they'll be "bulky" and "power hungry."
Instead, Apple will reportedly make an iPhone that has a combination of GSM and CDMA chips next summer, which will allow one phone to operate on all carriers.
It's not out of character for Apple to skip brand new technologies in its products. The company did the same thing with its first iPhone in 2007, opting to introduce the phone on AT&T's 2G Edge network and not 3G, even though it was available in dozens of markets across the U.S. at the time.
4G networks are becoming available in many markets, but the roll out won't be near completion until near the end of 2011. At that point, 4G will be standard and Apple probably won't need much convincing to offer an compatible iPhone by 2012.
