Analyst Determines the iPhone 5 Launch Date from a Single Chip

A renowned analyst employed by the investment bank and asset management firm Piper Jaffray is convinced Apple’s next iPhone will be “the mother of all upgrades”, and that “there’s going to be lines around shopping malls to get this.”

Gene Munster’s reasoning is a natural one. Apple’s iPhone 4S was a software upgrade, rather than a refresh based on new aesthetics and new hardware-based benefits. Aside from Siri, the iPhone 4S is pretty much just a faster iPhone 4 - and only to the trained eye.

As such, the analyst is convinced Apple’s next iPhone - the iPhone 5, as it is being referred in the media - will launch with a killer new design, as well as faster LTE networking, and a bigger display.

In his interview with Bloomberg West anchor Jon Erlichman, Munster doesn’t weigh in on the liquidmetal rumors. However, he specifically notes that the chips produced by Qualcomm - required for LTE wireless - are a direct indicator of the phone’s launch date.

Qualcomm reportedly told the analyst that its latest radio chips, presumed to be part of the next Apple iPhone, would not be available in bulk until December.

The reasoning here is that even if Apple has a deal signed with Qualcomm to be the first client to source these chips early, this still doesn’t give Tim Cook enough time to launch this iPhone at WWDC 12 in June.

That is, if Apple hasn’t switched to another supplier, which Munster finds very hard to believe: “Given how tight their relationship is with Qualcomm, we think that’s unlikely,” he said.

Apple’s share price has taken an 8 percent hit in the last week, but Munster is confident this is just a natural occurrence in the stock market. He suggested Apple investors need to be patient and watch what happens when the iPhone 5 debuts.

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