Why would Apple ship the white model this late in the iPhone 4's lifecycle? Because people will buy it, of course, and that's a good enough reason. And like the , which now sells for only $49 with a two-year AT&T contract, the iPhone 4 may live on as the bargain alternative to the iPhone 5. Assuming that's the case, Apple may very well sell millions of white iPhone 4s.

I really shouldn't blame Apple for all the headlines. The company is notoriously uncommunicative with the news media, and it never discusses its upcoming products. What's fascinating here is that so much reportage in the past year has been devoted to the color of a particular smartphone. That speaks to sway Apple holds over the press and public. Could you imagine an endless serious of breathless updates concerning the mysteriously-delayed mauve ? Or how about the turquoise ?

You wouldn't see those reports because, frankly, nobody would care. The iPhone? Well, that's a different story. Personally, I couldn't care less about the white iPhone 4, but apparently a lot of people feel otherwise. Ah, Apple, how do you do it?

So is the white iPhone 4 coming? Or does it exist only in another dimension? You make the call.

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