BGR claims that they've discovered a reference to LTE in an internal iOS build, which they've managed to get from one of Apple's carrier partners. They however can't confirm if Apple's eagerly anticipated next generation iPhone will support 4G LTE networks.
But before you get excited, it seems highly unlikely that Apple will launch a 4G LTE iPhone this year, as the implementation of LTE networks has not yet matured. AT&T and Verizon are expected to complete the rollout of their 4G LTE network nationwide only by 2013.Apple executives have also indicated that they’re not willing to take a lot of design compromises, which are enforced by the current-generation 4G LTE chipsets. Chipmakers like Qualcomm, ST Ericcson and Intel are expected to launch the next generation chips towards the end of this year, which are expected to meet Apple’s requirements. So Apple is widely speculated to launch a 4G LTE iPhone in 2012. But we won't be surprised if Apple is already testing a 4G LTE iPhone to ensure that it is adequately tested for next year.
We hope that iPhone 5 comes at least with HSPA+ support, which has been rumored. HSPA+ is advertised by many GSM carriers as '4G'.
