Is Apple prepping an iPhone 4B?

Steve Jobs probably still believes that Apple’s embarrassing “Antennae-Gate” was blown way out of proportion by overeager journalists and overexcited analysts.

Nevertheless, it appears that the company may have bitten the proverbial bullet and is preparing to launch a second iteration of its controversial iPhone 4.

According to the Mexican-based CanalMX tech site, a Telcel carrier rep by the name of Marco Quatorze has gone on record as stating that Apple will soon release a “revised version” of the iPhone 4 with a tweaked antenna design. 

However, AppleInsider’s Slash Lane noted that Quatorze’s comments were likely “mere speculation” – rather than genuine inside information.

“The notoriously secretive officials at Apple would not likely to share such information with a carrier partner,” opined Lane.

“But Quatorze’s comments – if they are in fact based on legitimate information and are not purely speculation – could suggest that Apple is quietly working on a hardware revision that it plans to release by the time the iPhone 4 Case Program concludes.” 



Eric Slivka of Mac Rumors expressed similar sentiments.

“The veracity of Quatorze’s claim is unknown, as it is unclear whether a carrier executive at his level would even be privy to such information, and it is possible that he may simply be mistaken in his understanding of Apple’s September 30th expiration date for the free case program.

“[Still], at Apple’s iPhone 4 press conference last month, Steve Jobs noted that the free case program was launched with an initial expiration date of September 30th to provide the company with time to continue its investigation of the antenna issue and perhaps come up with a better solution for future customers.”