Apple is gearing up to introduce the most-anticipated device of the year -- the iPhone 5 -- to impatient consumers. A new report from Bloomberg has emerged suggesting Sprint will begin selling Apple's fabled new phone this October.

The report suggested that Sprint Nextel Corp. will be offering the smartphone next month on an unlimited data plan. Bloomberg's report went on to clarify that Sprint, the third-largest U.S. wireless carrier, will begin selling the device in mid rather than early-October.

The report follows a previous slew of rumors suggesting the as-yet-unconfirmed device would be released in October. In the case of the iPhone 5, most of the features attributed to it are in the realm of rumors. But some features are more likely to be included in the phone than others. For sure, the iPhone 5 will feature the latest iOS 5 operating system, the A5 processor found in iPad2, a higher megapixel camera compared to the iPhone 4 and a slimmer and thinner design.

Bloomberg reports that the iPhone's new version will have an 8-megapixel camera and 1080p video recording, along with dual-LED flash, and will closely resemble the iPhone 4. As leaked by Sony CEO Howard Stringer, the iPhone 5 may also carry an HD FaceTime camera, similar to those shipping with the current MacBook Pro lineup.

Regardless of when the new iPhone 5 will arrive there are certain Android smartphones features the next generation iPhone 5 will more than likely not come with:

Here are the six features Android handsets have that the iPhone 5 will not:

Near Field Communication (NFC) Facility: The rumor that Apple will equip its next iPhone with NFC gained momentum when Google released its NFC-based mobile payment feature in the form of Google Wallet in May.

NFC allows simplified transactions, data exchange, and wireless connections between two devices in close proximity, usually by no more than a few centimeters. Emerging NFC standards allow customers to quickly purchase products and transfer secure information by touching devices. NFC allows companies to reduce staffing, printing, and point of sale costs.

Globally, 100 million people use mobile payment outside the U.S., but only 3.5 million use the technology in the U.S. As of now, NFC is just a rumor for the iPhone 5 and most probably Apple won’t be embracing the technology, since Near Field Communication has no industry standards.

It is said that Apple has disclosed in some of the meetings that NFC won't be on the feature list of the next iPhone. The Independent, citing some of the largest mobile carriers in the UK, said that Apple will forego NFC in its next iPhone due to lack of industry standards about the technology.

4G LTE: There have been a lot of rumors regarding the possibility of the next-generation iPhone being available on 4G networks for AT&T, Verizon and Sprint. The consensus from analysts and tech experts seems to be that the iPhone 5 will not have 4G support as any phone coming with 4G technology has to bear the highest component costs than any other smartphone coming without it.

In fact, 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless chips required for the faster speeds in Thunderbolt cost an extra $39.75, according to industry researcher IHS. Also, given the size of the LTE chip, Apple iPhone's minuscule printed circuit board (PCB) will have to grow in size in order to support the first-generation LTE baseband processor as well as all the supporting chipset which is in clear contrast against Apple’s plans to deliver a lighter and thinner smartphone in the form of iPhone 5. So most probably, iPhone 5 will not be featuring 4G LTE support.

True App Integration: Application integration provides end-to-end and real-time connectivity between internal applications, existing Web-based applications and off-the-shelf software products. Application integration allows users to send messages and files back and forth between systems, transforming the messages and automating the process. The true benefit of internal application integration is that it allows businesses to automate and manage end-to-end business processes that involve both human and electronic operations.

Google Voice may finally be available for the iPhone, but the experience will never be the same as it is on Android. Other iPhone apps always direct you to the default dialer and visual voicemail apps, so even if you want to use Google Voice full time, you have to manually navigate it to yourself. On Android, apps like Google Voice integrate directly with the operating system. That means, when you try to make calls with Google Voice, as you click on a phone number in your browser or in Google Maps, it goes through Google Voice instead of sending you to wrong dialer.

Over-The-Air Updates: (OTA) As mobile phones accumulate new applications and become more advanced, OTA configuration has become increasingly important as new updates and services come on stream. OTA updates are pushed out by the carrier and Internet connection is required.

Many rumors point out that iPhone 5 will finally offer over-the-air updates. In simple terms, rather than plugging the smartphone into a computer to update its operating system, users can do so wirelessly over the Web. In other words, new iOS versions pushed directly over the cellular network without any need for iTunes synchronization. There's no need for a pesky USB cable or computer running iTunes.

It all “just happens” and “just works.” But in reality, despite Apple’s best intentions, it probably wouldn’t go that way. Presently, Android devices are updated via OTA method. As those Android devices have shown, over-the-air updates take time to bring it to all the users. It may sound simple, but in reality it is not as efficient as Apple’s method.

Flash: Though the iPhone browser, Safari, is fast and smooth it lacks the capabilities to play any content which needs Flash player. Android phones however support flash players on their browser and have the flexibility to play everything from videos to plain text in no time.

A previous estimation suggested that 95 percent of PCs have it. Adobe claims that 98 percent of U.S. Web users and 99.3 percent of all the Internet desktop users have installed the Flash Player. Flash, recently, has been positioned as a tool for Rich Internet Applications.

However, one thing is sure that the iphone 5 will not support Flash. In an open letter, Apple CEO, Steve Jobs stated that the Apple wouldn’t support Adobe Flash. He mentioned that “Flash was created during the PC era — for PCs and mice. But the mobile era is about low power devices, touch interfaces and open Web standards — all areas where Flash falls short.”

Removable Storage and Battery: It is not the part of the Android software, necessarily, but Android's open nature allows for quite a few hardware advantages too like the ability to take out, swap, and upgrade your battery and SD card.

While, Apple’s iPhone versions differ from other smartphones on the market is in terms of removable storage, none of the previously released iPhones have featured removable storage. This is probably by design as it helps justify a higher priced model with more memory.

Over the years the iPhone has offered impressive internal storage (from 8GB to 32GB), however, some iPhone users are unhappy over the lack of a memory card slot, which can expand the handset’s storage capabilities and provide a quick and easy way to back up data.

In the same way, you can swap out a spare battery for longer trips or even get an extended battery that'll help your phone go longer without charging. In case of Apple, the previous versions of iPhone did not feature a removable battery means even the iPhone 5 will not have it.

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