IPhone 5 Rumors 2012: Will Apple's Next Smartphone Be Water Resistant? Top 5 Ways To Prevent Liquid Damage [SPECS]
Smartphone users with slippery fingers may be in luck with the iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy S3. According to TechRadar, a company that produces water-repellent gadgets has been talking with Korean manufacturers about liquid-proof parts. Reuters

The hype surrounding the iPhone 5 and its delayed release has been considerable for some time now. Rumors aside, the death of Steve Jobs (a day after the iPhone 4S was released) and the seemingly endless war of patent disputes with rivals Samsung may have threatened the device's release.

According to Gene Munster on CNET, the iPhone 5 was expected by mid-summer in 2012. Meanwhile, the fact that Apple has committed itself to platform updates for their operating system iOS 5, could be another indication that their next major software release - the iOS 6 - will be released beyond June / July 2012 and therefore, so will the iPhone 5; the connection being that the new device will have a new OS.

Among other key developments, a revamped iPhone 5 interface is also on the cards, as is a redesigned form factor. Further speculations include the addition of flash memory to improve operation efficiency and overall system performance. Finally, a stronger battery could also be included, given the concerns users of the iPhone 4S have.

Highly-placed sources within Apple Inc. suggest the phone could be released to commemorate the death of Steve Jobs, the companys' founder and former Chief Executive Officer (CEO); if that is true, expect the phone on Oct. 5, 2012. This report could have some truth in it, given earlier rumors that Jobs was quite uninterested in the development of the 4S, preferring to concentrate on its successor. Those reports also say the next iPhone could be black in color.

On the sales front, the iPhone 5 has a bright future ahead. A networkworld.com report suggests the device should grow revenue by 35 percent (as compared to the 18 percent Apple's smartphones currently generate), by fiscal year 2013.

Meanwhile, Samsung's 3G technology and its wireless patents account to at least four counts of patent infringements by Apple. In addition, reports from a Dutch court indicate the Cupertino-based company's defensive stance and arguments against a $100 million penalty as being excessive. The point is that given Samsung's acquisition of thousands of smartphone patents (against a few hundred for Apple), the latter could be fighting a losing cause should the iPhone 5 ever get banned.

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