Next iOS 5 IPSW Drops August 18th. May Be GM

Buried deep inside the latest iOS 5 beta seeded to developers in July lies a file whose code indicates when the next beta (or, why not the GM?) will be released.

Code savvy individuals who were curious enough to try and interpret some code in iOS 5 beta 5 have accidentally discovered that Apple is leaving clear indications as to when the next update will be delivered.

According to their findings, the next seed (likely iOS 5 Beta 6) should arrive August 18th, a week from now.

However, the same file referenced a different date upon its original discovery - August 17th. So why is it changed now?

Because, according to 9to5mac and iCloudil.com, Apple can change it remotely.

The change was most likely due to the discovery of a few bugs that added roughly a day’s worth of testing to the schedule.

Needless to point out, this means August 18th is not rock solid either, but it’s the safest bet right now, since it’s the current listing for the next iOS 5 release - namely iOS 5 Beta 6, or even iOS 5 GM.

GM, short for Golden Master, is the general designation for the shipping-ready version of iOS, and Mac OS.

For example, Apple’s Lion GM was assigned the build number 11A511, the same number that a Mac App Store Lion build will yield.

With iOS 5 scheduled to make its public debut this fall, it is safe to assume Apple will want to wind up development rather soon.

iPhone Dev Team member Musclenerd wrote in a tweet earlier this month: “redsn0w 0.9.8b5 tethered JB released for iOS 5 beta5 (JB app devs only please) […] (GM is getting closer!).”

Knowing these guys are well versed in all things iOS, we are inclined to side with them in believing that the final bits are just around the corner.