Apple iPhone Clues in iTunes 7

An Apple analyst said Friday there is further proof the computer company will soon make its own iTunes-enabled cell phone.

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster said in a research note, “We believe there is more tangible evidence of the existence of the iPhone from the resource files in the new iTunes 7.” He was referring to reports that the latest iTunes software, which was released Tuesday, has messages that suggest features for a mobile phone, such as messages about copying games and synching photos to mobile phones.

Mr. Munster said such features are not on the ROKR phone that was jointly developed by Apple and Motorola and released last October. “This resource file message suggests there will be a phone that will be capable of synching with iTunes, and that the phone will support iTunes and photos,” Mr. Munster said in the report. He added, “We believe this phone is most likely the iPhone, with an outside chance the message is in reference to an upcoming phone from a current phone manufacturer.”

The evidence, rather than the revelation of a phone, is what’s more compelling here. Indeed, UBS analyst Benjamin Reitzes said in a research note Tuesday that he is “still expecting new products in the coming months… including touch-screen video iPods with larger screens and cell phones.”

What’s more, talk of a phone made by Apple has been on the lips of observers for more than a year. Some believed the ROKR was deliberately made clunky—it’s an old-school candy-bar style with room for just 100 tracks—so that Apple could later offer an improved model.

Others believe that due to the extremely enthusiastic following of Apple fans, the Cupertino, California-based company could become a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), selling its phones as well as Apple-branded cellular service.