iPhone 4S Release Date

There's no mistaking that change is in the air for Apple this year.  June and July came and went with no new iPhone, not even a new iPhone announcement.  Now, Summer is ending, Fall is starting in mere days, and we're still anxiously waiting for the Apple Media Event to unveil and announce the new iPhone 5 release date.

Amongst all of the rumors and commotion surrounding the new iPhone 5, there's also an iPhone 4S release date to add to the intrigue and excitement.

It's widely expected that Apple will be targeting a much broader consumer market base this year by introducing an "affordable", lower-end, iPhone.  This new, widely anticipated, iPhone product line addition has been coined the iPhone 4S or, in some instances, it has also been referred to as the iPhone 4 Plus.

At this point, most rumors are pointing towards the new iPhone 4S release date occuring on October 7, 2011 or October 14, 2011 alongside the new iPhone 5.

And, clearly indicating that we're getting close to the new iPhone 4S launch, @chronicwire posted pics today apparently showing retail packaging of an iPhone 4S OtterBox case (Commuter Series).

If you're not overly aware or haven't yet heard of the iPhone 4S until you came accross our article, you're probably a bit confused at this point.  Don't be, it's pretty simple in our opinion.

For starters, the iPhone 4S is expected to be very similar in form, if not nearly identical, to the current iPhone 4.  It's also expected that it will launch upgraded with a new Apple A5 processor under the hood.  In terms of pricing, here's the angle.

If you can't afford $199 or much more depending upon buying an iPhone with or without a wireless contract, then, whether you like it or not, your only real option is to buy a smartphone running Google's Android operating system.

An iPhone with a lower cost of entry would certainly help to shore up this consumer base for Apple because it would finally give consumers an iPhone option to choose from instead of having to opt for an Android handset simply because of cost.  Granted, the iPhone 4S launch is not going to bring an iPhone loaded with the bells and whistles that will accompany their flagship model (rumored iPhone 5), but it will be an iPhone nonetheless.

To put it into perspective, if Apple follows this course, we believe the iPhone 3 and 3GS will be phased out and replaced by the current iPhone 4, the new iPhone 4S, and the iPhone 5.  Hence, a new product line, at a wide range of price points depending upon device specific hardware features, to expose the iPhone to a much broader base of users.  We also believe each device will run Apple's new IOS 5 to ensure software compatibility since software fragmentation is a major knock on Android powered smartphones.