Edible Apple

Sprint customers looking to get the iPhone won’t have to wait much longer. There has been an avalanche of evidence which all points to Sprint carrying the iPhone by mid-October. Most recently, we reported that Sprint had blocked employees from taking vacations from September 30 through October 15 due to an upcoming “major phone launch.’

And as the iPhone rumors continue to break off in unexpected directions, TUAW is now reporting that while Sprint will begin carrying the iPhone in October, it will only be the iPhone 4. Sprint customers looking to get their hands on the iPhone 5 might have to wait until 2012, according to a Sprint employee who claims to have been briefed on Sprint’s iPhone 4 launch plans.

The briefing reportedly told the sales team that Sprint will begin offering the iPhone 4 in October 2011 (next month) with standard Sprint data plans; they will include a $10 data smartphone premium that is not specific to iPhone.

The associate also suggested that Sprint will carry a 4G iPad, though launch dates and pricing were still unknown. Of course, Sprint already sells 4G access for the iPad via its external mobile 4G WiFi product; maybe that’s what the briefing referenced.

This news conflicts with a few previous reports claiming Sprint will carry the iPhone 5 at launch but is perhaps more evidence that Apple will release two new iPhone models this fall – an upgraded iPhone 4 alongside a newly designed worldmode iPhone 5.

via TUAW