While Apple has only just released the new iPad, iMore has already started to hear more about the next generation iPhone (iPhone 5,1). We previously reported that Apple was working to reduce the size of the traditional 30-pin dock connector to something closer akin to a micro-dock so there'd be more room inside for other components (similar to how they went from a mini-SIM to a micro-SIM in 2010). Yesterday we reported that, as of last month, Apple was planning to stick with the current 3.5-inch screen size for the new iPhone, but that it wasn't set in stone and it could get a little bigger (though nowhere near as big as current 4.5-inch-plus Android phones.)

Following that story we received some additional information.

First, the new iPhone will be 4G LTE compatible. That shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, considering the new iPad supports LTE and it's hard to imagine Apple giving the iPad a feature like that and not passing it on to the iPhone. So look for that this fall.

Second is the timeframe. We've mentioned October 2012 as the current release schedule for iPhone 5,1 before and that's still the plan. The exact date won't be determined until closer to launch, but the iPhone is locked to a fall cycle for the immediate future.

That makes sense for a number of reasons. While going from the iPhone 4 in June 2010 to the iPhone 4S in October 2011 was a longer wait than previous generations, a new iPhone release in June of 2012 would create the opposite problem -- only 9 months between iPhones. That's not dissimilar to the period of time between the Verizon iPhone 4 launch in February of 2011 and the cross-carrier iPhone 4S launch in October of the same year, but that was a unique circumstance. Apple has shown they can earn significant revenue on their flagship devices even when they've been on the market for over a year. Why unnecessarily shorten that shelf life?

Also, to date, every new iPhone has been launched alongside a new version of iOS. The last version, iOS 5, was a major, ambitious update, including iCloud and Siri, and Apple made good use of those 16 months to bring it to market. We have no specific information on how large an update Apple is planning for iOS 6, but 9 months doesn't sound like a lot of time for even a modest release. If Apple announces an iOS 6 SDK event this spring, like they did from 2008 to 2010, then we may start getting an idea. If iOS 6 isn't introduced to developers until WWDC, presumably in the summer like 2011, then a fall release would seem a certainty.

So to sum up, iPhone 5,1 is on track for:

• Similar if not same sized screen (currently 3.5-inch but not set in stone)
• 4G LTE radio
• New "micro dock" connector
• Fall/October 2012 release

There's some other stuff we're still looking into and we'll update asap. In the meantime, if next generation iPhone rumors and discussion are your thing, jump on into our iPhone 5 forum and have at it.

Despite the latest rounds of super-gigantic iPhone screen size rumors, iMore is hearing that, as of last month, plans for the new iPhone (iPhone 5,1) called for the same 3.5-inch screen as previous generations. While we're told that isn't set in stone, and it's possible Apple could go slightly bigger, there's doesn't seem to be any chance for anything even approaching the size of a Galaxy Nexus.

Not only does that come from a good source, but it stands to reason. First, Apple has put a tremendous amount of time, energy, and marketing into the concept of a Retina display. With a Retina display, density can get lower as distance increases -- that's why the new iPad's 2048x1536 Retina display at 264 ppi doesn't need to be as dense as the iPhone 4S' 960x640 Retina display at 326 ppi. -- but Apple probably wouldn't push a 960x480 display to 4.65-inches and settle for 248.12 ppi.

They probably wouldn't bump up the resolution either, because it would break compatibility with existing software. That's something they deliberately avoided in the past by exactly pixel doubling the older screen resolutions to get to the Retina display, rather than going with an arbitrary size or standard resolution like 720p.

Apple has also paid attention to one-handed ease of use, keeping every inch of the iPhone screen easily accessible -- if held in one hand, most people's thumb can still reach the opposite corner without much difficulty.

Surveys have suggested users would appreciate a larger screen on the iPhone, and perhaps Apple would consider something up to 4-inches. At 960x640, a 4-inch screen would be 288 ppi. A 3.75-inch screen would be 307 ppi. Both are lower than the iPhone 4S but still higher than the new iPad, but they'd let Apple maintain the current resolution and much of the one-handed ease of use.

Nothing bigger than that seems likely, however. Apple also has a way of disregarding market research. The late Steve Jobs liked to quote Henry Ford: "If I had asked my customers what they wanted they would have said a faster horse."

iLounge is reporting the possible leak, via iTunes, of what can only be termed an iPhone/iPod Touch "Fatty". Turns out that the newfangled SDK led a curious developer to Education First Educational Tours "private page" (the tool that would, for example, allow an enterprise to make and release apps accessible only within their own company and not for sale to the general public). Revealed on this "private page" was the tantalizing/horrifying image of the "fatty" (or perhaps the long fabled iTablet Safari Pad?).

Is this just something Education First Educational Tours mocked up? A photo miss-shop? Phil Schiller brainstorming Apple rumors? Or a real leaked product shot (a la 3G Nano?) Only Steve Jobs, Rumor-Smasher, know for sure.

More on this as it develops...