iPhone5 Rumors: Half-Size Phone Or Larger Screen?

The iPhone5 will be half-size and cheaper. No, no. It will actually have a larger screen and a keyboard, and will probably not be cheaper at all.

These are just some of the latest rumors in the run-up to Apple's buzz-generating annual release of its latest iPhone. Since the original iPhone's launch back in 2007, Apple has released a new device every summer, and the run-up to each launch has generated reams of digital ink on the blogosphere. Will it have a video camera? front facing? back facing? both? Will it be bigger? smaller? Will its antenna work?

As a testimony to Apple's ability to keep on generating annual "must-have" items that don't differ that greatly from the previous year's item - rumors are abounding on the internet as to what Apple will hit the market with this summer.

First there were rumors that Apple was planning to release a cheaper, half-size iPhone that will use the cloud to store data in a central location free-of-charge.

The free cloud service which looks like it will go ahead irrespectively of the new device's size, is expected to be part of a major revamp of Apple's MobileMe online storage service, which lets users store data centrally and synchronize their calendars and contacts among computers and other devices.

The service currently has an annual subscription fee of $99. The free service will allow users to automatically store in the cloud personal data, such as photos, music and videos, eliminating the need for a larger device with a large memory.

But now, reports suggest that the iPhone5 might not be smaller or cheaper. In fact, Apple may launch a larger iPhone with a 4-inch screen and, possibly, a keyboard.

Taiwanese newspaper Digitimes cites "upstream component suppliers" in reporting that the next generation of the iPhone could get larger as part of Apple's effort to compete with Android devices.

A report in the Wall Street Journal suggested that Apple was indeed planning on releasing several different versions of the next generation iPhone, but noted only that the company was prepping a cheaper line of phones.