LEAK: SPRINT BLACKS OUT FIRST HALF OF OCTOBER FOR LAUNCH OF "MAJOR PHONE"

An internal memo obtained from Sprint employee indicates the carrier will have the iPhone5 and it will launch the first week of October. The memo states lists blackout dates, during which employees cannot take vacations, from September 30 to October 15 in anticipation of a "major phone" launch. Blackouts are common among carriers for devices expected to be in high demand. It ensures retail stores have enough staff to handle the anticipated crowds. Since no other phone is expected launch, much less any that would require blackouts, it is expected this will be the launch of Apple's highly anticipated iPhone5.

RUMOR: POSSIBLE iPHONE 5 PHOTO

An image of what could be Apple’s next-generation iPhone has surfaced online. 9to5 Mac published the photo, which it received from a tipster, and the site does not claim to be able to verify the authenticity of the image. According to the report, the site’s tipster saw a presumed Apple employee using the device in public when he snapped the above picture of the man and the device.

While there’s no telling if the handset seen above is in fact Apple’s iPhone 5, it certainly doesn’t resemble any iOS device we’ve seen to date. There are some discrepancies with earlier leaks, however, that claimed to reveal case designs for the iPhone 5. The volume rocker, for example, is still on the left side of the device pictured above, but earlier case designs showed it on the right.

On the other hand, Apple has undoubtedly finalized its hardware design at this point, so it’s entirely possible that the iPhone 5 is undergoing real-world testing. A test on a train is certainly necessary so Apple can see how the device performs when rapidly switching between cell towers, so that’s another good sign. Would an Apple employee be holding the device out in the open without something concealing the device and the Apple logo on the back? We’re not so sure.

RUMOR: iPHONE 5 TO LAUNCH IN SEPTEMBER

According to Craig Berger, an analyst for FBR Capital Markets, Apple will be breaking the launch cycle for the iPhone 5. Apple typically releases the iPhone in June/July, but Berger stated the new iPhone 5 won't launch until September.

Berger stated in a note to investors:

For the iPhone 5, we continue to hear that a July launch is unlikely, with various casing suppliers and touch suppliers still ramping up, with some chip vendors not having yet received firm iPhone 5 orders, and with other sockets like the image sensor (most likely going to Omnivision exclusively, but with some potential for Sony to split that socket) still in flux. Given these factors, we think a September launch is more likely, off from Apple’s traditional iPhone launch schedule, but giving the firm more time to enhance its next-generation instant communications on the phone.

He went on to say Apple plans on building 100 million iPhones this year which is up from the previous estimate of 75 million.