We know these next-generation iPhone rumors have been out of control (aren’t they every year right before a new iPhone is slated to be released?), but we just received some new information from an incredibly solid source of ours. According to our source, Apple will indeed be launching a prepaid / lower cost iPhone this year. We are told the handset will retail for no more than $350 without contract. Ready for the really interesting part? It’s entirely possible that the low-cost iPhone will in fact be the iPhone 3GS. We reported that we were able to independently confirm that the iPhone 5 featured a radical new design, however this source of ours isn’t quite sure that will be the next iPhone. Whether it’s the iPhone 4S or 5, it will be coming out or “at least announced by the end of Summer, late August-ish.” They theorized that we’d have seen new 3rd party cases by now if the upcoming iPhone featured a different exterior, though Apple has surely been cracking down on their case specification leaks. If this turns out to be true, it will mean there would be an iPhone 4S in addition to the prepaid iPhone 3GS available within the next month to two. Let’s do one better, though. In addition to that news, we are told that Apple will continue to sell the current iPhone 4 as well, finally giving the company a full range of devices in the lower, mid, and high-end price segments. Coupled with rumored launches on Sprint and T-Mobile in the U.S. alone, Apple seems prepared to once again take charge and lead in the smartphone market.
