iLounge

A supposed fourth-generation iPhone has been found in the wild, and has since been photographed and disassembled. Gizmodo reports that the unit was found in a bar in Redwood City, CA, in a case that made it appear to be an iPhone 3G or 3GS. While it will display a connect to iTunes screen, and is recognized by Xcode and iTunes as an iPhone — with different product identifiers than any current iPhone model — it appears the device was remotely wiped by Apple prior to Gizmodo receiving the unit, and since there is no build of the iPhone OS publicly available for this model, it is currently non-functional. The unit features a drastically different design than current iPhone models, with a thinner body, rounded corners, nearly flat aluminum sides, and a flat back plate that appears to be made of either glass or ceramic.

Notable features include a front-facing camera, a larger rear camera lens with flash, a micro-SIM slot, now mounted on the side, what appears to be a secondary microphone near the headphone jack, possibly for noise cancellation, individual volume up/down buttons, a slightly smaller, but seemingly higher resolution screen than the iPhone 3GS, and a 16% larger battery. Upon disassembly, Apple-labeled internal components were found, as well as a much smaller logic board. While it is possible that this will be the final design of the fourth-generation iPhone, it is also possible that this is simply a prototype unit; in any case, many of the new features and the overall design are expected to carry over to the final device.