In what can apparently be seen as the latest substantiation of the rumors pertaining to Apple's next iPhone iteration - which is widely referred to as the iPhone 5 -, a recent report on the Japanese blog Macotakara has revealed that Sony and Hitachi have begun shipping 4-inch LCD displays for "a new iOS device."

The Macotakara report, citing unnamed sources `in the know' of the proceedings, said that the new iOS handset - which has neither been officially announced nor has there been any disclosure of the timeline for its release - will feature a 4-inch screen.

Earlier too, the rumors about the supposed `iPhone 5' having a bigger screen had surfaced, when SlashGear had drawn attention to some leaks which had pointed out that the display of Apple's next-generation iOS handset will be lengthened by approximately 8 millimeters.

In addition to the news about the iPhone 5's bigger screen which will seemingly be shipped by Sony and Hitachi, the Macotakara report has also claimed that the LCD screens for the iPad 3 are also being shipped by these two companies.

There are also rumors making rounds that the next-generation iPad - which will reportedly be "changed fundamentally" - will be Apple's first tablet to boast the company's proprietary high pixel-density Retina Display technology.

In case the Macotakara report, and the other rumors, turns out to be true, it will become quite evident that Apple has started collecting the components for the next iOS handset and commenced the production of units.