Apple retail stores seen carrying universal iPhone 4 bumpers

The Verizon iPhone isn't quite here yet, but a newly designed bumper case, that fits both the AT&T and Verizon versions, is. We noted earlier that some third-party cases, as well as Apple's own bumper cases, would need slight modifications to fit the new Verizon iPhone.

While the Verizon iPhone is mostly unchanged externally from the AT&T iPhone, there were some changes made to the metal band around the exterior, which functions as an antenna for the device. Because of this, the mute button was moved. The new bumper case has a wider opening for the mute switch, and that's the only change.

In addition to moving the mute switch slightly, the Verizon iPhone has 4 antenna gaps, while the AT&T design has only 3. Aside from that, it's pretty much the same device, except, Verizon would claim, that it runs on a more reliable network. Meanwhile, AT&T would claim it runs on a slower network.

For ourselves, speed doesn't count for much if the network is overloaded. The countdown to the Verizon iPhone 4 continues, with pre-orders beginning for existing Verizon customers on Feb. 3. You can see the unboxing video below.

Third-party iPhone 4 cases may face issues with moved Verizon controls

Verizon's iPhone had to have some tweaks to work on the network, and apparently some of that extended to the metal band antenna that extends around the exterior of the phone. As you can see from the image above, there's an extra notch that results in controls being moved. That said, many cases will no longer fit properly.

In particular, Apple's bumper cases will not fit the new Verizon version. It's not all bad news, however. The company is already reworking its bumpers to fit the new Verizon iPhone 4. It's unclear when those will be available, or if they already are, but it's a few weeks until the launch.

As far as third-party manufacturers go, you bet there are more than a few who are going to have to rework their cases.