While the iPhone 5 rumor mill has had its fair share of purported features for the 2011 iPhone, few of the features have been what onlookers would call “novel.” In many ways, wanted features for the iPhone 5 such as NFC, an 8-megapixel camera, voice recognition, and a larger screen already exist in the smartphone marketplace on Android phones. As a result, an underlying current of discontentment and concern continues to rise among iPhone users who feel as though the iPhone 5 could end up being just a “catch-up” device to Android.
Today, however, a new report emerged that suggests the iPhone 5 could indeed include a novel, new feature: a projector. While some Android phones have dabbled in this idea, none have successfully installed an onboard projector for displaying video, photos, and the screen onto any flat surface.
The story comes by way of Patently Apple, which covers new patents registered by Cupertino. According to the Independent, “A patent application granted by the US Patent & Trademark Office on August 11 hints at Apple’s plans to incorporate tiny projectors into its future iOS and Mac devices.” Patenly Apple goes on to say in the article, “‘Apple has been working on this idea for some years now,’ but the level of detail included in the most recently granted patent suggests ‘that Apple’s development teams are moving full steam ahead on the projection system project.’”
MacRumors added to this rumor by noting Apple has recently registered the Applepico.com domain, assuming that this could be the new brand name for the projection feature.
However, all of these sources fail to take into consideration the late filing of this patent, and that it is doubtful that a late-filed patent invention would show up on the iPhone 5. Typically, patents are filed at least one year in advance of the technology going mainstream, since a company like apple cannot afford to begin production on a groundbreaking, new invention that is not patented, since it would be grossly copied the second it hit the market. Thus, it is highly doubtful that the iPhone 5 will have a projector.
The iPhone 6, however, is another story.
There is plenty of reason to believe that a year’s time would be enough to see this new patent developed to the point where it could end up on the iPhone 6 in 2012.
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