DVT-1
Latest
iPod touch prototype with capacitive home button leaked?
Ah, would you look at that. Earlier this year there were rumors about Apple ditching the physical home button on upcoming iOS devices, and now we have what appears to be a new iPod touch prototype matching such description, courtesy of CrunchGear via Mr. Blurrycam. According to its About screen, this "DVT-1" (a late milestone) device packs 128GB of memory -- twice as much as the largest available capacity option right now (remember that 64GB iPhone 4 prototype in Hong Kong?) -- as well as a model number "MC550LL" which isn't far off from those of the fourth-gen iPod touches ("MC54xLL"), though this similarity doesn't help prove its authenticity nor indicate whether it'll make it to the market. Still, if Apple does go ahead with this grubby device or at least its capacitive home button, we might see new touch or gesture controls for the bezel area below the screen à la webOS, as suggested by an earlier patent. But hey, let's not take this too seriously for now -- all this could turn out to be just a much belated April Fools' prank, right?
iPod touch with 2 megapixel camera leaked in Vietnam (video)
Guess who has another Apple scoop? Tinhte, the upstarts from Vietnam have first pics of the mythical iPod touch with a camera. The "DVT-1" stamp on the back makes it clear that this is an early design verification test unit in the evolution of product testing. In other words, this might not be the final design whenever Apple chooses to announce it, say, on June 7th. A check of the device's serial number identifies a late 2009 third generation iPod touch -- could be that this device was one of those eBay prototypes that never made it to production for whatever reason. The Foxconn manufactured device is also running the same base diagnostic utility that we've seen before (who could forget that "serial number" icon). The Foxconn label appears to indicate a 64GB model ("64G" using a pair of Samsung 32GB Flash modules presumably) in addition to a 2 megapixel, backside illuminated sensor manufactured by Omnivision (part OV2665-6s). Video after the break.%Gallery-93275%
One more thing... two iPod touch prototypes with camera briefly show up on eBay
Another day, another Apple leak. This time it's an eBay double whammy of the camera-donning iPod touch, which appears to be of the same design from August but now with iPod branding on the back. Better yet, the two devices bear the prototype identification codes "DVT-1" and "DVT-2" ("DVT" stands for "design verification test" in Apple-speak, according to Daring Fireball), while the DVT-2 model wears an extra bar code label seemingly stamped by the "Apple Development Team." What's interesting is that the model number "A1318" at the bottom matches the current iPod touch's, which may suggest the camera feature was ditched just before the current line went into mass production, or that we may see this variant as a minor update instead of a redesigned iPod touch in the coming months. We tried to verify using the FCC ID "BCGA1318," only to be let down by a kaput FCC database -- we'll give it another spin later. Unsurprisingly, the eBay listing was quickly taken down, but it's not like any mere mortal could've gotten much use out of that Transformer-themed (and familiar-looking) "SwitchBoard" test-bed software -- maybe it was a displeased Michael Bay who killed the auction. A couple of backside shots after the break. [Thanks, Sam]
