iPhone Mini? Apple Working on Smaller & Cheaper iPhone

Could an iPhone Mini debut this year? According to Bloomberg, Apple is set to unveil a smaller iPhone model in the middle of this year, which is around the same time the iPhone 5 release date and WWDC 2011 conference is expected.

iPhone Mini: iPhone 4 Components, 1/3 Smaller, $200

Citing a source who has seen a prototype, the smaller version of the iPhone that we’ll loosely call iPhone Mini will be cheaper and start at $200 without requiring a service contract. The device is said to feature components from the existing iPhone 4, but be about 1/3 smaller than existing models. Bloomberg’s source cautions that “the introduction may be delayed or scrapped” and that not many Apple employees know of the project.

iPhone Mini & iPhone 5: Dual-Mode with Universal SIM?

Possibly related, Bloomberg also says that Apple is working on dual-mode iPhones, which would allow a single device to work on both GSM and CDMA networks, in addition to a Universal SIM card that would allow iPhone users to jump between different GSM networks without switching sim cards. A Universal SIM may signify that iPhones carrying such a chip would be carrier agnostic, which would render the iPhone carrier unlock hacks irrelevant.

Bloomberg and iPhone Rumors
Earlier this year Bloomberg said that the upcoming iPhone 5 and iPad 2 models would become digital wallets through a built-in NFC chip.

Bloomberg should generally be considered a fairly reliable source of Apple rumors. Last year their sources accurately predicted the Verizon iPhone announcement would be in January 2011.