"Lost & found" iPhone 4... truth or hoax?

[darren]

So the big story this week is that a couple of weeks ago, an Apple engineer who works on the baseband programming for iPhones "misplaced" his prototype next-gen iPhone at a bar. It was remotely killed by Apple the next day, but it's subsequently made its way into the hands of the folks at Gizmodo...

This Is Apple's Next iPhone - Iphone 4 - Gizmodo

... and it looks hot as hell!



I'm hoping this is the real thing, as i've been waiting for the iPhone to slim down a bit and get a lot less plasticky before taking the leap.

But i'm wondering... is this really what's going to be launched in the next couple of months? Is it a strategic leak by Apple to keep the iPhone in the news for the next few weeks, and keep iPhone lust high?

Or is it just an elaborate hoax? (note that the Gizmodo disassembly shots don't show ANY Apple-identified parts)

[Max]

hope for it dude!

[JBroll]

Clearly a hoax - too many buttons.

Jeff

[sami]

I dunno, doesn't look too streamline I guess. But +1 to Jeff

[Josh]

Less distinctive, more functionality. I like it.

It's great publicity for Apple, intentional or not, real or no. This will just stoke the hype machine.

[darren]

Well, it's definitely real:

A Letter: Apple Wants Its Secret iPhone Back - Iphone 4 - Gizmodo

Now the question is, "Is this the iPhone they're going to release in June?"

[Vince]

Originally Posted by JBroll

Clearly a hoax - too many buttons.

Jeff

Apple Introduces Revolutionary New Laptop With No Keyboard | The Onion - America's Finest News Source | Onion News Network

[JBroll]

That's slightly more charitable than the iPhone Shuffle, but not by much...

Jeff

[Vegetta]

sounds like viral marketing to me. apple are so tight assed about pre release information I cant see them letting any hardware out of the Cupertino campus for fear of something exactly like this happening...

Front Facing camera so all the narcissists will have an easier time taking photos of themselves

And before one of you pro apple people jumps in and screams "ITS FOR TEH VIDEO CONVERSATION" yeah I figured that is what it is for

[Jeff]

It's either viral marketing, or Gizmodo are a bunch of unethical shitbags. Anything to increase the ad revenue, eh douchebags?

DISCLAIMER: I would feel that way about ANY company's device that was stolen, be it Apple, MS, Google, etc. If something is a prototype a company doesn't want shared, I don't think it's ethical to keep it and hold it after being asked for it back.