Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile

Did parts from a new iPhone model (briefly) appear on YouTube?

By

The odds are resoundingly against any surprise CES announcements concerning Apple’s iPhone (Apple will reportedly wait to around Valentine’s Day for that). But that’s not stopping a new wave of iPhone speculation fueled by leaked photos and videos that seem to show parts belonging to a device that is very similar an iPhone 4 — but not quite.

Several iPhone repair and parts companies claim to have somehow gotten a hold of parts that belong to a new model of iPhone. The website GlobalDirectParts.com posted a video to YouTube yesterday that appeared to show a bare metal iPhone chassis. Earlier today, the video was yanked indicating a complaint from Apple.

Recommended Videos

How the companies could have come into possession of the parts is as big a mystery as how an Apple engineer could leave an iPhone 4 prototype in a bar, but without allowing for alcohol consumption as a valid excuse.

Related

If the parts do indeed belong to a new iPhone model, then it appears that Apple may have adjusted the phone’s antennae design to correct the “antennaegate” issues that initially plagued the iPhone 4’s launch last summer.

Another theory circulating suggests that the parts belong to a re-worked iPhone that is meant to run on a CDMA network — potentially fulfilling the interminable “Verizon iPhone” prophecy. However, it has been pointed out that the chassis appears to have a SIM card slot which would imply either dual CDMA/GSM capability or that it’s designed to run on Verizon’s nascent LTE network, which seems rather unlikely.

Another curiosity unveiled in the video was the absence of a rear-camera hole, leaving many to wonder if Apple is planning on doing away with a two-camera design completely or has merely developed slimmer parts that require less infrastructure support. Light leaks from the camera design have been suggested as a cause of the delayed release of the white iPhone 4.

As we learned from last year’s iPhone 4 leak, Apple is going to remain tight-lipped and guard its secrets closely until Steve Jobs is good and ready to say something. And until then, or until we see a leak of a wired-up model, we can only guess at what 2011 has in store for the  iPhone.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Aemon Malone
Aemon Malone
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Another report suggests the iPhone 15 Pro will be pricier
The Apple logo on the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Apple is expected to manufacture a slightly smaller number of iPhone 15 handsets compared to the iPhone 14 last year, but the company is eyeing an increase in revenue when the device launches in the fall.

How? Because it’s considering increasing the cost of the iPhone 15 Pro models.

Read more
I lost my iPhone on a dream vacation — and it wasn’t a nightmare
Photo of Spain.

Our trip to Spain and Morocco, which my wife, Julie, had meticulously planned for 15 months, started off rather inauspiciously on June 25. After arriving in Chicago from Portland, Oregon, we learned that our connecting flight to Newark, New Jersey, had been canceled due to weather concerns. As we waited in line for two-and-a-half hours to talk to a United Airlines agent, we were told via text by a customer service rep that we might be stuck in the Windy City for two days.

A 30-year Spanish teacher, Julie was on the verge of fulfilling a lifelong dream of visiting Spain. Now, several activities were in danger of being erased from her bucket list as her worst fears about the trip were being realized. When we finally made it to the service desk, our hope was all but snuffed out. We explained the situation to the agent, who spent several minutes looking at his computer wordlessly. He eventually looked up and said: "I can you get out on a flight tonight."

Read more
How to fast charge your iPhone
iPhone 12 Mini with charger

While they may not be some of the longest-lasting smartphones on the market, modern iPhones boast more than respectable battery life that should be able to get you through an entire day's use without breaking too much of a sweat. Of course, that assumes a lot of things — including a battery that's still relatively new and in good health, plus a usage pattern that doesn't include all-day streaming or gaming.

If you fall into either (or both) of these categories, then overnight charging isn't going to cut it, and you'll want to get your battery topped up again as quickly as you can so you can get back on the road. Thankfully, every iPhone released in the past six years supports much faster charging, but the downside is that with very few exceptions, Apple has never supplied you with the right adapter to get the best possible charging speeds from your iPhone.

Read more