With the release date of the new iPhone (News - Alert) becoming less vague every day, new reports from the Wall Street Journal say what some reports have said all along: the next version will indeed manage to be thinner than previous releases, by virtue of a thinner touch screen that contains the components inside the screen itself, as opposed to sandwiched between the panels.

Reports also suggest the thinner panels are already in the works in Apple's (News - Alert) Asian supply chain, building up to an eventual release, which some suggest will happen this fall, around the same time that the iPhone 4S made its appearance.

KGI Securities' Ming-Chi Kuo believes that with the new display technology in play, the next iPhone could be as much as .44 millimeters thinner than even the iPhone 4S. This particular report actually got a note of corroboration when it was discovered that Wintek, one of Apple's Asian suppliers, was actually looking at decreased June sales, in an event that hadn't happened for some time prior.

The new technology allows for reduced thickness, instead of requiring manufacturers to install a display and then a second layer over the display to accommodate the touch controls, by allowing them to install a display with touch controls built into it.

There's not much word yet as to what all the next iPhone will contain, which is par for the course as far as Apple releases go. Apple has been seen, in recent years, to play its releases very close to the vest until the actual launch date hits.

An even slimmer iPhone is an attractive prospect, no mistake there, but with the growing amount of competition in the field from successful releases like Samsung's (News - Alert) recently-launched Galaxy S III, it would seem like Apple would need a bit more going for it than thinner phone models and extreme brand loyalty to hold its ground in the market.

Still, with likely a few months to go before launch, it will likely be worth the wait to see what Apple's hiding with its newest iPhone.

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