This Is Apple's Next iPhone

FAIL! by alexandre · 2010-04-19 03:15 · Score: 4, Funny

So they actually got it connected with a SIM card or WiFi before trying it and filming the result and that's how it got remotely killed by big brother?

Major FAIL !

Re:FAIL! by five18pm · 2010-04-19 03:23 · Score: 4, Interesting

With both engadget and Gizmodo getting their hands on the "next iPhone" in different bars in different cities, it is difficult to believe that somebody actually lost the phones. Either both engadget and Gizmodo got fooled or this is more a marketing campaign than lost phones. I would bet on latter.
Re:FAIL! by Pete+Venkman · 2010-04-19 03:26 · Score: 3, Informative

I was under the impression that this was the same phone. That's what macrumors said.
Re:FAIL! by discord5 · 2010-04-19 03:35 · Score: 4, Insightful

With both engadget and Gizmodo getting their hands on the "next iPhone" in different bars in different cities, it is difficult to believe that somebody actually lost the phones. Either both engadget and Gizmodo got fooled or this is more a marketing campaign than lost phones. I would bet on latter.
"Oh hi you techreporters. I'll just be finishing my drink and then conveniently leaving my NEW FREAKIN' IPHONE 4 *cough* here for someone totally random to find."
What? It could happen...
Re:FAIL! by Altus · 2010-04-19 03:54 · Score: 5, Insightful

According the TFA the phone was functional before being remotely wiped by Apple. Certainly people do walk around with camouflaged, functional engineering samples during the testing cycle for new phones. I know employees at Nokia are often given pre-release hardware to try out both in the building (early testing) and outside the building (later in testing)
It really does sound like this is a real unit. It may have been leaked intentionally but that doesn't make it less relevant.
The only thing that makes me suspicious is that I cant find any report on what chip it is using. I would expect them to say something about that, even if all they said was that the processor didn't have any markings on it. I would think that would be one of the first things they would look at.

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Re:FAIL! by Ipeunipig · 2010-04-19 03:56 · Score: 2, Funny

Plus being "Found" in the city of their greatest competitor??
Maybe it was a super secret spy mission from M$ and he was so happy it was successful that he went to celebrate at the local bar before handing the 'package' over to Gates himself!!
Re:FAIL! by Sockatume · 2010-04-19 04:00 · Score: 2, Informative

Engadget never got its hands on the device. They got their hands on photos of it.

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No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
Re:FAIL! by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 04:03 · Score: 5, Funny

Apple!
iPhone!

APPLE!
IPHONE!

APPLE!
IPHONE!

APPLE!
APPLE!
APPLE!
IPHONE!
IPHONE!
IPHONE!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!
aPple iPhone!

yay SLASTROTURFING!!!!
Re:FAIL! by Abreu · 2010-04-19 04:04 · Score: 4, Insightful

Considering how Gizmodo always squees over every little thing Apple makes, it seems specially suspicious

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Re:FAIL! by IWaSBoRG · 2010-04-19 04:08 · Score: 2, Informative

Engadget's images are stamped with "Gizmodo Exclusive", so I don't think Engadget has one.
Re:FAIL! by LWATCDR · 2010-04-19 04:16 · Score: 2, Insightful

If this wasn't intentional then someone is looking for a new job.
And b.
If you find a lost cell phone shouldn't you really try and return it? Since it is an iPhone one could probably take it to an Apple or AT&T store and they could read the sim and contact the owner.
Just saying that finding a cell phone and then keeping it seems a lot like stealing to me.

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Re:FAIL! by Mister+Whirly · 2010-04-19 04:20 · Score: 5, Insightful

Apple sure pulled the wool over your eyes. What, do you think after "accidentally" letting the phone fall into the hands of the press, Apple was going to act like it wanted it to happen? No, because that give them just enough plausible deniability so that folks like you will make statements like -

It doesn't sounds like marketing to me.
This is classic textbook Apple advertising of a new product. Next some specs will be leaked and posted online, and after sufficient time that anybody is interested can see them, Apple will start issuing takedown notices. Are all of you really not going to remember that Apple has done stuff like this in the past??

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me dozens of times, I'm an Apple customer."

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"But this one goes to 11!"
Re:FAIL! by slick7 · 2010-04-19 04:21 · Score: 4, Funny

According to the person who found it, this iPhone was running iPhone OS 4.0 before the iPhone 4.0 announcement. The person was able to play with it and see the iPhone 4.0 features. Then, Apple remotely killed the phone before we got access to it. We were unable to restore [...]
Next time test inside a Faraday cage.....noob.

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Re:FAIL! by lennier1 · 2010-04-19 04:27 · Score: 3, Insightful

Might be time to start taking your meds again.
Re:FAIL! by nine-times · 2010-04-19 05:00 · Score: 2, Interesting

Well the claim is that these were probably supposed to be camouflaged a bit to look like normal iPhones, and that the casing probably isn't what the final thing will look like.
Bah, who knows.
Re:FAIL! by Score+Whore · 2010-04-19 05:18 · Score: 2, Interesting

Apple's not going to depart from their favored 4:3 aspect ratio, despite that looking all Ozzie and Harriet now, and all the might of the world moving on to 16:9.
The iphone has a 3:2 screen aspect.
There certainly is something to see here. Namely that if you like the iphone platform, you can look forward to hardware that is competitive with other phones. That's pretty nice.
Re:FAIL! by Civil_Disobedient · 2010-04-19 05:18 · Score: 3, Insightful

You'd have to remember it, since the phrase has absolutely no legal basis and would subsequently be absent from any published legal rulings. Like, ever.
Re:FAIL! by Gloume · 2010-04-19 05:22 · Score: 2, Insightful

They don't favor 4:3. Current iPhone is 480x320, aspect ratio 1.5. The resolution I've seen suggested for this device is 960x640, which is also AR 1.5.
Re:FAIL! by Chuck+Chunder · 2010-04-19 05:23 · Score: 4, Funny

Plus with as many phone cases as there are out there, the best camouflage (assuming you're trying to protect against someone noticing the iPhone UI on a non-iPhone looking body) would be a case, even if it was poorly fitting.
Like the case they talk about in the article as being camouflage perhaps?

The camouflage case
The case it came inside was a fully developed plastic case to house this phone to disguise it like a 3GS. This wasn't just a normal case; it had all the proper new holes cut out for the new switches and ports and camera holes and camera flash. But it looks like something from Belkin or Case-Mate. It's a perfect disguise.
There's even a fucking picture so you don't have to read....

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Re:FAIL! by Moridineas · 2010-04-19 05:25 · Score: 2, Informative

I wonder if they'll even have HSPA full implemented on this one (no iPhone does uploads faster than 384kb/s)?
Is this true? I have the speedtest app and was looking through past results and I have two 3g results that are higher than that number, the highest being 613 kbps.
Could be a glitch or something I guess, as most of the other 3g results have upload speeds of about 250-300kbps.
Re:FAIL! by icebike · 2010-04-19 05:55 · Score: 2, Insightful

Plus 1 to everything you said.
This just gets Apple back to par with Nexus One, and HTC Droid Incredible, with ugly unimaginative styling.
Until someone reveals the chipset inside we still have no idea if we are stuck with those horrible infineon chips which are the root of iPhone evil.
Apple is clearly no longer the leader. This phone is their admission of that fact. They hope packaging will save them. Look forward to multiple colors. That seems to be the "innovation" of choice when Apple sees no other avenue for improvement.

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Re:FAIL! by Anonymusing · 2010-04-19 06:17 · Score: 5, Insightful

Apple is clearly no longer the leader. This phone is their admission of that fact. They hope packaging will save them.
Apple was never the leader in features or chipsets. However, they are the leaders in packaging, marketing, and UI (the latter being disputable by some folks, especially on Slashdot). And those things translate into mindshare and sales.

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Re:FAIL! by falcon5768 · 2010-04-19 06:27 · Score: 2, Interesting

not at all sad. Japanese phones have been above this level for years, but are AWFUL to use. The UI like it or not is what has made the iPhone superior to the rest of the phones on the market. Sure marketing has some to do with it, the iPhone is hip the Droids and the like are not, but it does what it says it does and does it WELL. And that is why it sells.

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Re:FAIL! by Kristoph · 2010-04-19 06:43 · Score: 3, Funny

It all sounds like a bad d&d plot device ...
- you and your party are sitting in a bar
- suddenly you kick something with your foot
- it looks like last years artifact of awesomeness
- BUT NO, ITS BRAND NEW ARTIFACT OF AWESOMNESS! ZOMG! WHAT DO YOU DO?!?
Re:FAIL! by iamhassi · 2010-04-19 06:59 · Score: 2, Informative

"I have two 3g results that are higher than that number, the highest being 613 kbps."

Same here. Here's a link to the iPhone speed test app.

My highest was also in the 600 kbps range. It was so fast in fact that the 3G upload was faster than the wireless network supported by DSL I was currently connected to that the time, which topped off around 300-something.

Here's a video of a guy testing his home network using the Speed Test app

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Re:FAIL! by edmicman · 2010-04-19 07:37 · Score: 2, Funny

Haha we've got one at work for I'm sure less than that...it's called "the building". None of the guys with iPhones/ATT coverage get any signal at all within our office.
Re:FAIL! by iamhassi · 2010-04-19 07:42 · Score: 5, Interesting

"Until someone reveals the chipset inside we still have no idea if we are stuck with those horrible infineon chips which are the root of iPhone evil."

I still call fake.

This whole bar story doesn't add up either. I've been to many bars with many cellphones and I've never lost one, how the hell do you lose a prototype iPhone at a bar? That's not just your $500 phone, THAT'S YOUR JOB IN YOUR POCKET.

What are the odds that a iPhone would just happen to be found by gizmodo and engadget? Of all the people in the world? And how much would a popular blog pay for a iPhone prototype? Imagine the hits you'd get with first real photos of the next iPhone! You could even put a no-name blog on the map with real photos. This prototype is incredibly valuable.

If anyone really found a prototype iPhone it would be on eBay until they pulled it, but not before it received thousands of hits and a few dozen bids up to several thousands of dollars, but someone would contact them outside of ebay and negotiate a deal anyway.

Let's not forget that there's not one photo of this prototype iPhone running. Why not? They couldn't charge it? The brains behind engadget and gizmodo can't charge an iPhone? Let me guess, they found a "broken" iPhone prototype at a bar. Yeah, that sounds reasonable.

Some people argue "Well Apple wiped it remotely!" Seriously? Wiped it so well it doesn't turn on at all? Not even a "charge me" screen? I don't buy it. I would be happy with seeing any photo of this thing running next to a regular iPhone, just so you can somewhat compare resolutions.

WHERE'S THE INTERIOR PHOTOS!? ONE photo of the interior, and not a good one. WTF? This is my biggest skepticism. Why not a dozen photos of various processors, the new cameras, the wifi chip, etc. We could piece together every feature of the new iPhone just by interior photos, but they only posted one which shows almost nothing. FTA: "it said it was XX GB, but since we were unable to get the phone to a running state, we couldn't see exactly how large it was." Well if you would have taken photos of the chips someone could probably find the size. FAIL

Changing design doesn't make sense either. Apple has 3 generations of iPhones shaped exactly the same, and now they go in a different direction? Of course Apple did the same thing with the Nano, 5 generations of Nanos and the 3rd and 4th are shaped differently from previous generations, but this is a phone, a lot of money and research has been spent making compatible cases and docks, to change it now would cost a lot of wasted time and money by hundreds of companies.... although that means new licensing fees for Apple.... ok, perhaps new design does make sense ;)

This is either Apple's April Fools on Gizmodo/Engadget or a clever marketing by Apple

UPDATE: while I was writing this post I found this: Apparently Gizmodo did buy this phone:
"iPhone was stolen from Apple, then purchased by Gizmodo."

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Re:FAIL! by osu-neko · 2010-04-19 09:32 · Score: 2, Insightful

I've been to many bars with many cellphones and I've never lost one, ...
News flash: you are not the center of the universe. What has happened to you in your life does not form the basis for any kind of logical argument about what is or isn't normal in the world. To argue in this fashion indicates a fundamental (probably unconscious) assumption about your place in the universe that is essentially delusional, elevating your place in it to a greater importance than it actually has.

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Re:FAIL! by Draek · 2010-04-19 09:37 · Score: 2, Informative

Which is to say, in a perfectly market-based way, Apple is the leader in terms of features people actually want.
In a perfectly market-based way, the leader is he who has sold the most units. And Apple ain't, not yet.

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No problem is insoluble in all conceivable circumstances.

iPhone - NOT by WrongSizeGlass · 2010-04-19 03:18 · Score: 3, Interesting

Take a good look at the photo of the back of the phone. The bottom of the device looks white (like a white iPhone) and has the normal iPhone contours. That device is different from the other pictures they're showing.

And not showing the UI? Shenanigans!

Re:iPhone - NOT by radicalskeptic · 2010-04-19 03:20 · Score: 4, Insightful

If you'd actually read the article, you'd know why they consider it to be a next gen Apple phone (many parts inside branded APPLE, in a case designed to make it look like a 3G iPhone, behaves just like an iPhone when you connect it to a Mac, uses the Mac proprietary dock connector, etc, etc). Are you saying that everyone at Engadget had been fooled, or are you saying they are playing a late April Fools joke on us? Frankly I don't think either is very likely.

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Re:iPhone - NOT by friedmud · 2010-04-19 03:58 · Score: 2, Informative

Micro SIM is going to be in use in just a couple of weeks when the 3G iPad comes out....
Re:iPhone - NOT by sunspot42 · 2010-04-19 03:58 · Score: 5, Interesting

The original iPod's design was clearly heavily influenced by the design of Braun products - especially radios - from the 1950's and '60s. Braun's historic designs are widely regarded as some of the best examples of industrial design from the 20th century. Many Braun designs are on display at the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan. Saying that something looks "like a Braun product" - if you're comparing it to one of Braun's traditional designs - is an enormous compliment.
That having been said, this new iPhone - if it indeed is an iPhone - reminds me more of Sony's designs from the early 1980's. Which isn't a bad thing - that's the period during which Sony reached its design peak, and influenced the rest of the consumer electronics industry.
I wonder if the seams are functional, though. If the case is all metal, perhaps the seams are there for the antenna to use.
Re:iPhone - NOT by anaesthetica · 2010-04-19 04:00 · Score: 4, Informative

Only can a true fanboy turn the phrase "like a Braun product from the 70s" into a compliment.
Not really. Dieter Rams is considered one of the best industrial designers. Take a look: comparison of Braun and Apple; and, slideshow of his work.

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Re:iPhone - NOT by node+3 · 2010-04-19 04:09 · Score: 2, Informative

Braun has been highly lauded for their industrial design in the past, and has been a large influence to Johnathan Ive. Aside from looking fairly different from anything else Apple currently sells, it is both Braun-like and Ive-like.
Re:iPhone - NOT by Sockatume · 2010-04-19 04:23 · Score: 3, Insightful

Only can a true fanboy turn the phrase "like a Braun product from the 70s" into a compliment. Because we all want to show off our new iEpilators.
Only someone with zero knowledge of design history would make such a statement. Braun's industrial design has been an explicit influence on Jonathan Ive's work at Apple.

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Re:iPhone - NOT by hazydave · 2010-04-19 05:12 · Score: 3, Insightful

Of course, the primary reason the iPad used the microSIM was supposedly just to that iPhone users couldn't just pop their iPhone SIMs into the device, but had to sign up for another $30 per month to use the iPad in cell modem. That's defeated if the new device supports the microSIM.

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-Dave Haynie
Re:iPhone - NOT by WrongSizeGlass · 2010-04-19 05:22 · Score: 3, Insightful

If you'd actually read the article, you'd know why they consider it to be a next gen Apple phone ...

I RTFA yesterday and the what the article says doesn't matter. The picture of the back of the device - the only part that displays the Apple logo or any other Apple info - is not the same device as the other photos. They're not claiming the found two separate new iPhones.

Suuuure, it was "found" by Rogerborg · 2010-04-19 03:19 · Score: 5, Insightful

And they "got" it from whom? Directly from Larry Lightfingers, or via Frankie the Fence?

J'accuse: they're dealing in stolen property, and they know it, or should know it. But ethics be damned, because ZOMG IPHOAAAN!!!!11! Right?

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Re:Suuuure, it was "found" by martas · 2010-04-19 03:28 · Score: 5, Insightful

either that, or this is yet another "accidental" leak by apple.

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weinersmith
Re:Suuuure, it was "found" by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2010-04-19 04:43 · Score: 4, Insightful

In this case, it goes well beyond the "ethical vs. pragmatic" debate of the $500 wallet. Unless it is a very elaborate setup, $500 in bills is functionally untraceable. Your choice comes down merely to whether you would rather "do the right thing" or "have $500".

In this case, an Apple prototype cellphone is all kinds of traceable. It'll have an IMEI burned in and(since it was remotely disabled) has probably left a trail of tower contacts in the recent past. Now Gizmodo has put up a note on their web page saying "Yeah, we have it. Also we took it apart.". Receiving and harboring stolen goods is illegal in basically every state, and can be a federal crime for items $5k or greater that cross state lines. It is totally plausible that a prototype is worth more than five thousand. Depending on the numbers in which they are being produced, it might have even cost that much to manufacture and, being rare and coveted, is worth rather more.

I honestly don't know what Gizmodo is thinking. This isn't one of those "Oh, Apple's mean lawyers are hounding a bunch of harmless kids and their rumor sites again" situations. This is a "Gizmodo staffers have just published a public admission of having committed a state and/or federal crime(and not one of those minimally and largely civilly enforced ones, like DMCA violations and DRM circumvention tools)". One or more of them could easily go to prison.
Re:Suuuure, it was "found" by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 05:24 · Score: 4, Funny

Wow, you are exactly the kind of person Apple loves. How can you even speak with Steve Job's cock rammed so far down your throat?
Re:Suuuure, it was "found" by dan828 · 2010-04-19 05:25 · Score: 3, Informative

We'll see, but I'm of the opinion that Gizmodo and Apple are in cahoots on this one. Giz is such an Apple fanboy site (look at their non-stop love fest with the iPad) that they wouldn't risk getting into trouble with Apple over this. I think Apple decided to leak this to counter all the traction the new Android phones are getting, and picked a general tech blog that has been behaving the most fanboyish lately. It all seems too pat.
Re:Suuuure, it was "found" by eharvill · 2010-04-19 06:42 · Score: 2, Informative

Now Gizmodo has put up a note on their web page saying "Yeah, we have it. Also we took it apart.". Receiving and harboring stolen goods is illegal in basically every state, and can be a federal crime for items $5k or greater that cross state lines. It is totally plausible that a prototype is worth more than five thousand. Depending on the numbers in which they are being produced, it might have even cost that much to manufacture and, being rare and coveted, is worth rather more.
Is it theft if they truly did find it (in a bar)? You find a quarter on the street and pick it up, is that theft? What is the moral obligation to try and return something that you found? Simply because it has more value it's more of an offense? It's not like they can call 1800APPLE and the person that answer would have any clue as to what to do. If it's traceable they should have called and said hey, you have my phone, can I have it back now? If they refused then I might consider it theft and call the appropriate authorities. /shrug

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Gizmodo, yeah, right by Bullfish · 2010-04-19 03:21 · Score: 4, Insightful

Whether this is truly a new iPhone or not, Gizmodo's opinion doesn't count for much. They would adore Job's lunch kit if they found it in an alley

Re:Gizmodo, yeah, right by Bigjeff5 · 2010-04-19 03:28 · Score: 4, Funny

Yeah, but have you seen Jobs's lunch kit? OMG I want one! ;)

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Re:Gizmodo, yeah, right by fortapocalypse · 2010-04-19 03:28 · Score: 5, Funny

This Lunchable has real ham in it, not the processed kind offered by Microsoft.
Re:Gizmodo, yeah, right by node+3 · 2010-04-19 04:19 · Score: 2, Interesting

Whether this is truly a new iPhone or not, Gizmodo's opinion doesn't count for much. They would adore Job's lunch kit if they found it in an alley
What you're saying is that Gizmodo tends to like Apple products, just like most people do, and that makes their opinion less valid?
Oh, I see. You mean that Gizmodo's opinions are often different than yours and that's what makes them suspect. Got it.
Re:Gizmodo, yeah, right by not-my-real-name · 2010-04-19 06:17 · Score: 2, Informative

Jobs is a vegetarian. It might look like real ham, but it's really processed soy protein.

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Sounds like a strategy to hold others sells... by viraltus · 2010-04-19 03:23 · Score: 4, Interesting

Android getting too popular and want to create expecation Steve?

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viral marketing ploy? by aapold · 2010-04-19 03:24 · Score: 5, Interesting

Doesn't sound like apple does it?

$5 says its some wannabe iPhone killer, just waiting for everyone to say how great it is before they go "tada! we secretly switched your java with folgers" in hopes of generating hoopla...

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Re:viral marketing ploy? by ajlitt · 2010-04-19 03:34 · Score: 5, Funny

If it turns out to run Android, then they'd go "tada! we secretly switched your Objective-C with Java."

iPhones aren't big news anymore so... by fortapocalypse · 2010-04-19 03:24 · Score: 2, Interesting

"Let's work with Gizmodo to make a big deal out of this new iPhone. This is top secret stuff, and people are going to salivate over it like nobody's business." Maybe.

Left at a bar in Redwood? by Orga · 2010-04-19 03:24 · Score: 2, Funny

Obviously it's infected with some virus.

Still too big by BadAnalogyGuy · 2010-04-19 03:24 · Score: 3, Insightful

The phone is still too big for those of us who want to use it for jogging. There are plenty of apps related to jogging, not to mention the whole "portable music player" feature. But the phone is just too bulky to take jogging.

Something a quarter of the size would be great. Keep the resolution, but shrink the whole thing by half in both dimensions and you'll keep perfect compatibility with existing apps.

I'm sad to see that this looks like more of the same old same old. It'll be another iPhone that I have to pass up because it just isn't what I need.

Re:Still too big by Nethead · 2010-04-19 03:32 · Score: 5, Funny

You insensitive clod!
Not all of us are young with good eyes and good knees.

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Apples Marketing Department by affenhund · 2010-04-19 03:26 · Score: 5, Insightful

Embarrassing, how the media got played to do advertisement for them. Goodbye, journalism.

Re:Apples Marketing Department by Have+Blue · 2010-04-19 04:17 · Score: 4, Insightful

Did you miss the runup to the iPad announcement? For months, the entire tech world was abuzz with rumors about the Apple tablet based solely on leaks, guesses, unofficial sources, and so on. Apple did not say a single word until late January and it was already one of the most anticipated electronic products in history. They are absolute masters at this because they've been cultivating it for years.

Re:Um... by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 03:31 · Score: 2, Informative

No.

iPhones have supported remote wipe via Exchange server or MobileMe for a long time now. Blackberry and Windows Mobile can also do the same (through their respective servers, of course)

Surely Apple would want to use the same features it gives to customers to rein in lost devices on its own prototypes.

Re:Um... by hedwards · 2010-04-19 03:33 · Score: 3, Informative

It's a selling point for some actually. The ability to wipe ones personal information off the phone in case it gets lost or stolen. Admittedly keeping sensitive information on a hand held is just asking for trouble, but being able to wipe remotely does have legit uses. Of course those are all out weighed by the possible abusive uses.

What does Jobs throw? by CompressedAir · 2010-04-19 03:39 · Score: 2

We know it isn't chairs, but one has to imagine that whoever lost this will be getting Job'd (or de-Job'd) in the near future.

(I know, the easy answer is "a massive fit, followed by going with a different vendor" but I was thinking something more physical.)

Unless this is just marketing, in which case, good show Apple. If I'm going to be marketed to, I prefer a little bit of drama.

Re:What does Jobs throw? by yabos · 2010-04-19 04:29 · Score: 2, Funny

Vegan hotdogs?

Best feature by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 03:42 · Score: 5, Funny

The best feature from the article

...it feels even nicer in your pants.

Re:Best feature by Nerdfest · 2010-04-19 04:03 · Score: 2, Funny

With the level the fanboyism is getting to these days, they better start removing the moisture detectors or making them 'water'-proof.

You expect quality journalism from a gadget site?? by Viol8 · 2010-04-19 03:42 · Score: 2, Insightful

Come on , you barely get proper journalism in proper gadget magazines , just lots of hyperbole, poorly researched waffle and laughable tests. What makes you think you'll get it on a website full of wannabe gadget mag staff writers?

How did it end up at Gizmoto? by HockeyPuck · 2010-04-19 03:43 · Score: 4, Interesting

I find it really strange/coincidental that someone loses a device and it somehow finds it's way to a technology review website? We're not talking finding the Mona Lisa here where the average person would know what it is. We're talking someone in a bar finding a lost iPhone and then realizing that the best place for it would be in the hands of Gizmoto. Unless the Gizmoto guys were the ones that happened to find it. Again, like an employee of the Louvre finding the Mona Lisa.

I also find it odd that the bar would turn it over to a 3rd party, rather than holding on to it in case the original owner came back. Unless this bar has this behavior. For example, if you left your car keys there, they'd just give it to someone else.

I don't buy it. It might be a real iPhone prototype, but I think there's some shenanigans at work here. Maybe something along the lines of:

Apple: Hey gizmoto, we're going to "lose" an iPhone at a bar (really just hand it to you) then you write up a review of what you find as if you just happened to find it sitting at a table. If someone asks about it, we'll tell the media that "an internal source" has indeed lost a prototype.

Gotta love free advertising. I was wondering when the next iPhone/iPad /. frontpage article would take place. Also, the iPad does blend.

Re:How did it end up at Gizmoto? by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 04:28 · Score: 2, Interesting

I don't think it's that strange. There's only 2 models of iPhones. Worker at bar sees left phone, picks it up to turn it on to find a "home" number or "me" contact or whatever, and goes "weird, it acts exactly like my [buddy's] iPhone, but it doesn't look anything like it." my favorite bar here they announce nightly specials via Twitter, so I bet a bar that an Apple early tester visits might have bar staff intelligent enough to notice all that and then post a twitpic with #newiphone?!?! Attached. Give it 20 minutes for a follower of them to see it, email engadget/gizmodo, another minute for the editor to regain control of their bowels, and an hour for them or a good friend of theirs to drive to get closer or get a number to call the bar and leave instructions...
as I said earlier, though, I'm only gonna believe it when one of these guys gets sued.
Re:How did it end up at Gizmoto? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2010-04-19 04:52 · Score: 3, Insightful

I'd say that that is the invisible hand doing its thing.

Ok, so you are a person of somewhat dubious character who "finds" cellphones in bars(whether you did in fact "find" and made no effort to return, or whether you make a profession of "finding" is unclear; but immaterial). Now, you happen to "find" a rather curious device, a clearly Apple-looking cellphone that doesn't publicly exist. What do you do with it?

To an ordinary fence, it is worth fuck all. Because it is a prototype, it is "hot" and probably being watched more closely than usual. Because it is a new model, none of the grey market hacking/unlocking/re-IMEIing/etc. tricks used to run iPhones in various dubiously licit secondary markets are going to work.

To a gadget site, it is worth serious pageviews, plus a fair bit of fanboy wank.

It seems pretty obvious which one of these potential customers you would get in touch with.
Re:How did it end up at Gizmoto? by Sockatume · 2010-04-19 05:14 · Score: 4, Informative

Gruber is reporting that Apple considers the device stolen, and it's been well-known that someone's been shopping it around tech sites asking $10,000 for some hands-on time.

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No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
Re:How did it end up at Gizmoto? by ottothecow · 2010-04-19 08:10 · Score: 2, Insightful

And when you sell it to gizmodo, they can protect you as a confidential source. If some court tries to force them to reveal, everyone will be up in arms.
If you sell it to a fence...

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Bottles.

What a dealbreaker! by broknstrngz · 2010-04-19 03:47 · Score: 2, Funny

3 grams heavier

That's it, I'm not buying it. My manpurse is already getting heavy.

Re:Reward by DIplomatic · 2010-04-19 03:50 · Score: 4, Insightful

From TFA: > So I called around, and I now believe this is an actual unit from Apple -- a unit Apple is very interested in getting back. If it's so important for Apple to get this phone back, I wonder why there's no reward...

How do you read the sentence a unit Apple is very interested in getting back. and NOT think Apple offered Gizmodo something in return for the phone? Information, maybe, if not direct money. I'm aware the sentence didn't contain the word "reward" but you can read between the lines.

Re:For what it's worth by Stenchwarrior · 2010-04-19 03:51 · Score: 2, Informative

Actually, I was able to get it in HTML. Someone take a look and see if it tells us anything....

http://cache-03.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/04/800x600_iphone16.jpg

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I .. by Ignatius · 2010-04-19 03:56 · Score: 5, Funny

0) Fixed that for you; 1)Linux; 2)Car analogy; 3)Insensitive clod; 4)A Beowulf cluster 5)In Soviet Russia; 6)??? [citation needed]; 7)Profit!

This is why I stopped reading gizmodo by kuzb · 2010-04-19 03:56 · Score: 4, Informative

It has become like one giant apple advertisement.

They used to have lots of different articles on a lot of different topics. Now they'll write 50 articles on a single device. Anyone who saw gizmodo on the ipad's launch day can attest to this. It's one giant fanboy fapping contest.

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BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.

Re:For what it's worth by InsprdInsnty · 2010-04-19 03:57 · Score: 3, Informative

They probably just used photoshop to place the watermarked 'Gizmodo.com Exclusive' on each of the photos, change the brightness contrast and apply some of those focus effects. All the usual stuff one might do to photos before publishing them on a commercial website

Re:iSick of it by Duradin · 2010-04-19 04:04 · Score: 2, Insightful

But we need all the Apple articles so that we can get our daily quota of Apple hating in.

Hating Apple is the hip thing to do these days and just think if /. wasn't seen hating on Apple for a hour or two what would happen to its geek cred.

FindMyPhone Not Working? by Wingsy · 2010-04-19 04:15 · Score: 4, Insightful

If Apple (or someone employed by Apple) actually lost their prototype iPhone, why didn't they use the FindMyPhone feature to locate it and go get it back?

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If I didn't have absolutely NOTHING to do, I wouldn't be here.

Re:FindMyPhone Not Working? by DECS · 2010-04-19 06:30 · Score: 4, Informative

Because Apple apparently wanted to wipe it to prevent the software from being usable/visible. Once you wipe it, the configuration for FindMyPhone is wiped too (the device has to be linked to an account in order to be found).
It's better to lose hardware that can only be looked at than lose the hardware and the software, which would reveal a lot more about features. Gizmodo couldn't even say what the screen resolution was, because all it does it ask to be re-imaged with software Gizmodo doesn't have access to install.
Apple never leaks prototypes into the wild for promotional purposes. If anything, the phone was stolen. Apple likes buzz, but is not going to benefit from two months of "don't buy an iPhone until this new one comes out."
Adobe slips mobile Flash Player 10.1 to second half of 2010
Re:FindMyPhone Not Working? by Valdrax · 2010-04-19 06:30 · Score: 3, Funny

The only other alternative is to come forward and confirm it as a real iPhone, which I can't see Apple doing.
Why not? Oh, maybe not immediately, but the statute of limitations is long enough that Apple can just wait until the final model is ready to debut and then press charges & file civil suit. It's what I'd do if someone took one of my prototypes and bragged about their theft to the entire internet.

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If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
Re:FindMyPhone Not Working? by nine-times · 2010-04-19 08:34 · Score: 2, Insightful

It's better to lose hardware that can only be looked at than lose the hardware and the software
Especially if the hardware wasn't final, and the phone was "in the wild" because they were testing new software features. FindMyPhone only works if the phone is on and connected, same as the remote wipe.
We all know that Apple has controlled leaks when they want to have an unofficial press release, but I agree that (assuming this really is a prototype for the next iPhone) this probably wasn't leaked on purpose. They've never been known to drop hardware like this, and they could have just as easly "leaked" photographs of the case. I bet that, even if this was a prototype, this isn't the final casing.

Re:iSick of it by bonch · 2010-04-19 04:21 · Score: 5, Insightful

We've had more iPad news in the last weeks than Linux news in the last months.

Um...no, we haven't. In fact, there's barely been any iPad news. Meanwhile, there was a story about Linux not attracting young developers, an analysis of Linux's shared kernel memory, GPL compliance checking in embedded software, how Android's Linux changes will make it back to the main source tree, how the WePad tablet will use Linux, etc.

I get that Apple competitors post here and are trying to drum up some lame anti-Apple sentiment, but lying will get you nowhere.

Flash! by Anonymous Coward · 2010-04-19 04:33 · Score: 3, Funny

So the next iPhone will have a flash.

Adobe must be pleased.

Re:Interesting feature: by amicusNYCL · 2010-04-19 05:16 · Score: 3, Insightful

The fact that Apple is apparently not pursuing Gizmodo over this doesn't indicate to me that the product is not genuine, it indicates to me that Apple was complicit in Gizmodo getting this device. It was on purpose, Apple handed the thing straight to them (in a bar in Redwood City, apparently).

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"Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black

Exactly - this is marketing by Weaselmancer · 2010-04-19 05:41 · Score: 3, Insightful

They had the stupid thing taken apart, but the article doesn't mention the CPU used or the amount of ram/flash on it.

Both are trivial to find unless the manufacturer took a file and removed the markings from the chips.

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Weaselmancer
rediculous.

Re:Exactly - this is marketing by Zaiff+Urgulbunger · 2010-04-19 09:52 · Score: 2, Interesting

You'd think so.... but possibly not. And this might also account for being able to reduce the size of everything *and* probably improve power usage too.

I think even with older iPhones/iPods they've had funny serial numbers on chips that are similar to, but not quite the same as other off-the-shelf components, making it not entirely clear what they are.

*ROFL* from the article by Zarf · 2010-04-19 07:39 · Score: 2, Funny

"it feels even nicer in your pants"

*LOL* ... that's in the article.

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[signature]

Re: Legality of "found" goods by malice · 2010-04-19 20:34 · Score: 2, Informative

I wondered the legality of this whole situation myself. As it turns out, the item would be considered "mislaid property" and what the person who found it was supposed to do was leave it with the property owner (the bar in this case) on the theory that the person would return to reclaim their mislaid item.

Given that this didn't transpire, the finder of mislaid items is the new owner, unless the original owner returns to claim it. The law also talks about the new finder making a "reasonable effort" to return the mislaid item.

The finder did apparently did try to contact Apple... but has since sold it to Gizmodo. Apple has made a formal demand for the property being returned to them, so it will be... but the damage has already been done, to an extent. I wonder if Apple has any recourse at all.

Here's the CA penal code on the matter: Lost and Unclaimed Property. Article 1. Lost Money and Goods.

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