Apple's New iPhone Specs Leaked? Faster Processor, More RAM, Better Camera & Larger Storage

A poster at Chinese Apple fan blog WeiPhone has posted specs and screenshot of what he claims to be Apple's new iPhone.

The tipster also claims that there will be no major changes in the physical design of Apple's next generation iPhone but will come with a faster 600MHz processor (up from 400MHz in the current iPhone), 256MB RAM (up from 128MB), a 3.2 megapixel camera with auto focus and a larger storage capacity of up to 32GB (up from a maximum of 16GB).

The tipster claims to have used prototypes of Apple's next generation iPhone thanks to a friend who works at Foxconn, Apple's manufacturing partner.

According to the poster, Apple's new iPhone will have the following new features:

• 600MHz CPU Speed (up from 400MHz) - We had heard that Apple's new iPhone will use multi-core processors. If the processor speed is 600MHz it will be slightly faster than the 2nd generation iPhone which was quietly boosted to 532MHz.

• 256MB RAM (up from 128MB) - This is new information. According to the tipster thanks to the faster processor and increased RAM, the speed of using the iPhone has "really improved" versus current models.

• Digital Compass and FM - Folks at BGR had discovered debugging menus in the beta version of iPhone OS 3.0, indicating that Apple's new iPhone could come with a built-in magnetometer (digital compass). It might also have FM Radio as iPhone OS 3.0 beta had revealed support for a new Broadcom chip BCM4329 which supports reception and transmission of FM radio signals.

• 3.2 megapixel camera with auto focus - We have heard several rumors that Apple's next generation will have a much better camera (in fact, 3.2 megapixel camera) and support video capabilities.

• 32GB size - We had heard rumors Apple is working on a 32 GB high-end iPhone and Low end 3G version.

• No major changes in battery, screen and external casing - Let's hope the battery part of the rumor is not true, Apple needs to improve the battery life of their new iPhone as it is one of my biggest gripes about iPhone 3G. There was a rumor that the new iPhone might include an OLED screen made by LG to improve battery life. Someone had also leaked a photo of the back cover of the new iPhone which revealed that the new iPhone case would shed its shiny black finish for a matte look.

The tipster has also posted a screenshot which seems to depict a new iPhone model number "MB717LL" with 32GB of Storage as seen below:

According to MacRumors:

As far as we can tell, the original poster has no track record for accurate information, though the Chinese web/forums have been a common source of early photos of recent Apple releases including the unibody MacBook and MacBook Pro casings.

AppleInsider has raised some apprehensions about the leak:

Some aspects of the rumor are dubious enough to call into question at least some of the story. It suggests that the next iPhone will have FM, for example -- a technology Apple has left out of all iPhones and iPods to date. The screen capture also makes reference to connecting to an AT&T network as the carrier, though it's not the same revision number seen by most US iPhones, which usually connect to ATT3.1 and not the ATT3.5 mentioned in the screenshot.

So what's your take if this specs of Apple's new iPhone turn out to be accurate.