Apple to showcase iPhone 4G at WWDC

Steve Jobs is still expected to have a few surprises up his sleeve

Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 4G at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco this evening, but experts have predicted that the handset will hold few surprises.

A number of rumours have been circulating about the new iPhone, including a 5-megapixel camera, a front-facing webcam and HD capabilities.

Few features have been confirmed, however, and the only concrete news is that the device will support tethering, according to US carrier AT&T.

Tim Shepherd, an analyst at Canalys, said that, while he does not expect anything hugely surprising, Apple will have some announcements that have not been leaked.

"We have seen leaked hardware so we think we know what to expect there. I think any changes will be evolutionary, not revolutionary," he said. "A similar form factor with increased performance through added RAM, memory and sensors is expected."

Shepherd suggested that, with regards to the hardware upgrades, the improvements in upgrading the camera have been unhurried, and that it will be sudden, but not entirely unsurprising, if the new device has HD capabilities.

Ian Fogg, a principal analyst at Forrester Research, identified two key areas in which he believes Apple needs to do better.

"Social networking integration needs to be improved because the iPhone is behind competitors. Support is currently provided through add-on apps, which are poorly integrated with inbuilt software," he said.

"Apple needs to build clear ties with inbuilt apps such as the address book, calendar, and photo and video uploads for social networking sites."