Christmas may be a very recent memory, and your belches may still be turkey and mince pie flavoured, but sources have no respect for the holidays. They must blab their highly confidential tidbits of information to eagerly attentive journalists regardless of the time of year. Rumours won't start themselves you know.

This time, it is a "close source" of Boy Genius Report who has poo-poohed the idea of sitting in front of the TV to watch The Wizard of Oz in preference to spilling their guts about the possible release date and design of the iPhone 5.

According to the site (and "confidently", to boot), the next handset from Apple will be released in the Fall of 2012, the same time as the iPhone 4S was launched in 2011 (14 October, for the calendar compulsives among you). Additionally, it will incorporate some form of rubber or plastic in its all-new design.

The material used will be similar to that of the bumper cases sold (and eventually given away) by Apple that protected the iPhone 4, and helped negate the effects of antennagate: "In all likelihood, this material will be used as a bezel surrounding the front edge of the phone," says BGR, although doesn't really explain why.

It also believes that the rubber or plastic will attach the glass screen to an aluminium back plate, much like that used on the iPad 2 - which, kind-of, complies with previous rumours.

Whether any of this is true or not remains to be seen. What we can guarantee is that, from now until the actual launch event in many months time, this will not be the last we hear about the iPhone 5. Oh no. No siree.

What would you like to see on the iPhone 5? Let us know in the comments below...