Apple posts iOS 4.2.6 for CDMA iPhone ahead of Verizon launch

The week before the launch of the iPhone on Verizon, Apple has posted a version of iOS 4.2.6 for the CDMA iPhone 4, possibly for journalists who have reportedly received review units.

iOS 4.2.6, available as a direct download from Apple, is listed as for iPhone3,3, which is the identifier for the CDMA version of iPhone 4 coming to the Verizon network on Feb. 10. The 652 MB download is labeled as Build 8E200.

Demo versions of the Verizon iPhone at the carrier's Jan. 11 press event were running iOS 4.2.5, suggesting that Apple has since made several minor changes to the software.

Apple issued a beta build of version 4.3, the next major update to iOS, earlier this month. The pre-release software contained support for several new multi-touch gestures, as well as GSM support for the Personal Hotspot feature included in iOS 4.2.6.

In documentation accompanying the second beta of iOS 4.3, Apple noted that the new gestures are provided as a preview and will not be enabled for customers. The update could, however, include a new Photo Stream service, as well as a "Find my Friends" feature.

Rumors of review units being sent out to select journalists and bloggers could be the reason Apple posted iOS 4.2.6 in advance of the Verizon iPhone's launch next week.