White iPhone 4 may finally go on sale just before the white iPhone 5

Still hanging on for a white iPhone 4? We salute your courage, strength and indefatigability. We just think you're a bit barmy, given the lengthy delay in Apple putting the device on sale. Here's some good news though: an industry analyst reckons it will finally be available early in April.

Ming-Chi Kuo from Concord Securities is the man with the speculation, claiming that Apple has finally solved its "full-lamination" problem that kept the white iPhone 4 off the shelves, despite having been unveiled in June last year at Apple's WWDC show alongside the black model.

It's been an epic saga since then, frankly. In July, Apple announced that the white version would be delayed, on account of being "more challenging to manufacture than we originally expected" -- a rare admission of a mistake by the company.

By the end of last year, there was a thriving market in do-it-yourself kits to turn black iPhone 4s into white ones, but still no sign of the device. In February this year, the proper white iPhone 4 popped up on the websites of Three and Orange here in the UK, as well as on online tech retailer Expansys with a SIM-free, pre-order price of £920.

The main question now is whether people will stump up even a lower price for a white iPhone 4, if it goes on sale in April -- Concord's Kuo says the device will go into full production this month to ensure it's available next.

Why might people hold back? Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 5 in June this year, and given the availability of white and black models of the iPad 2, it's reasonable to assume there may be a white iPhone 5 as well. In other words, if you've been crying out for a palefaced iPhone, you might prefer to wait a couple of months and bag the newest model.