Leak

Alleged next-gen iPhone circuitboard part suggests optimized camera design

As WWDC 2013 draws near - and with supply chain increasingly pointing to Apple's procurement of components for production of a next-generation iPhone - small wonder various parts are now cropping up on the web. It's the very nature of the game: Apple just can't control each and every one of its suppliers in Taiwan and China, let alone their individual employees.

A Japanese parts retailer, which recently leaked a next-gen iPhone components, is back at it, having published Thursday an image believed to depict a motherboard component, presumably belonging to an upcoming iPhone refresh...

Alleged iPad 5 rear shell highlights new design

Case maker Tactuc is on a roll lately. After the vendor, in what some people likened to a PR stunt, last week released a batch of photos purported to depict a polycarbonate shell for a rumored less-pricey iPhone model, the company is back at it today with a new leak claimed to represent the rear shell of a fifth-generation iPad. There isn't much to glean from the photograph and, of course, we have no way of telling whether or not this is the real deal, an early prototype or a shell for some other product. However, the image does bear resemblance to iPad molds Tactus leaked earlier...

Dubious budget iPhone plastic shell leaks

Apple's rumored less-pricey iPhone is thought to minimize manufacturing costs by abandoning the pricey two-tone aluminum body, replacing it with a less expensive polycarbonate shell akin to the white G3 iMac - or similar to the plastic body of the iPhone 3G/3GS, if you will. Now, rumor-mills, but also big media such as WSJ and Bloomberg, have repeated this particular data point numerous times, but we have never seen any physical evidence supporting the plastic body theory.

That changed Wednesday as case manufacturer Tactus, which recently leaked purported iPad 5 shell, posted an image that allegedly represents the back shell of the budget iPhone. We couldn't confirm its authenticity at press time so take this one with a pinch of salt, even more so knowing accessory makers often pull such stunts to get free press...

First budget iPhone part allegedly leaks: dual-head vibration motor

In what could be the first physical evidence of a part that may or may not be related to Apple's rumored less-pricey iPhone, a reliable Japanese blog has posts an interesting image of a ribbon cable with a dual-head vibration motor, obtained by repair shop iLab Factory. While the flex cable looks like it connects to the iPhone's standard volume rocker and mute switch, it's the rotation motor which raises hope that this particular part could belong to the budget iPhone...

Alleged iPad 5 front part with narrower bezels leaks

Multiple reports have pointed to Apple's fifth-generation iPad adopting design cues of its little brother, the iPad mini. Wednesday, another evidence surfaced suggesting that the iPad 5 indeed has the skinnier side bezels much akin to the iPad mini. Additionally, the gizmo is said to also borrow the iPad mini's thin appearance, be lighter and resemble its aluminum design. Here's a pair of photographs said to depict the device's front panel which has reportedly leaked somewhere out of China...

Alleged iPhone 5S Home button and vibrator parts surface

Part leaks for Apple's next-generation smartphone, rumored to be the iPhone 5S, have thus far been hard to come by. Back in January a purported speaker assembly for future iPhones popped up, but that's been pretty much the gist of it.

Until today, that is. A Japanese electronics parts vendor claims to have gotten its hands on a couple of 5S components. The first is a Home button, which looks a bit different from its predecessor. And the second appears to be a vibrator...

New iPad 5 case matches up with rumored mini design

MiniSuit, an accessory manufacturer, has sent out photos tonight of a new case for the upcoming fifth-gen iPad. It says it created the case based on specifications received from, what it believes to be, a reliable source.

Looking at the cover, it certainly seems to match up with what our expectations are thus far for Apple's next tablet. The company is reportedly redesigning the slate this year, with traits pulled from the iPad mini...

Alleged iPhone 5S assembly line spy shots surface, dismissed as a knock-off

At last, some pretty credible parts apparently belonging to the iPhone 5S are starting to emerge. A set of images posted by a Chinese tech site and allegedly depicting the iPhone 5S parts on an assembly line include several shots of the device's internals, including a vibration motor that looks to be a linear oscillating vibrator like that of the iPhone 4S.

That would be a departure from the iPhone 5's more noisy rotational motor which uses counterweight. It wasn't immediately clear whether the leaked images are authentic or perhaps show an iPhone clone being assembled somewhere in China, though latter seems to be the case. I've included a few more snaps right past the fold...

FCC filing reveals new, slightly smaller Apple TV

This is pretty interesting. Hot on the heels of yesterday's discovery of an unknown AppleTV3,2 device in the new iOS 6.1 firmware comes evidence that Apple is indeed planning to refresh the set-top box sometime in the near future.

The proof comes by way of a new FCC (Federal Communications Commission) filing, published today, from the Cupertino company. The documents out an unreleased Apple TV, model A1469, with slightly smaller dimensions...

Photos of alleged next-gen iPad shell surface

Even though it's only been a few months since Apple unveiled the fourth-generation iPad, the rumor mill is already rife with iPad 5 talk. The tablet has reportedly been redesigned to look like the iPad mini, with a thinner profile and smaller bezels.

Well if that really is the case, then this purported next-gen iPad shell fits the bill perfectly. It's dipped in the same black & slate color as the iPad mini, and features a similar design with chamfered edges and a smaller overall footprint...

Claimed iPhone 5S/6 speakers leak

The next iPhone is very likely just a few short months away so little wonder that slowly but surely first pieces of the puzzle are beginning to surface.

iOS hacker iH8sn0w today tweeted that future-generation iOS gadgets could add a new 128GB model, twice as much as today's top-of-the-line iPhones, iPads and iPods.

And on Friday, the usually credible iLounge posted a bunch of interesting tidbits pointing to a fifth-gen Pad with iPad mini-like design and a 13-megapixel back camera being the star feature of the iPhone 5S, among other goodies.

That's all hearsay, but now a leaked part has come our way, purportedly representing a speaker assembly for future-generation iPhones...

Samsung’s iPad mini contender caught naked in the wild

As expected, Apple's $329 iPad mini has taken off in a big way and is now arguably the company's best-selling iPad. Apple experienced supply constraints of the device throughout the holiday quarter and it immediately sold out upon its arrival to China last week. Cook in a conference call following earnings report attributed the 22 percent year-over-year iPad growth to strong sales of the lower-margin tablet.

Samsung, on the other hand, has been swarming the market with mobile devices of all shapes and sizes. The strategy has earned the South Korean company a distant #2 spot in tablet sales as it tries to keep pace with Apple. The firm is apparently working on an eight-inch Note device designed to challenge the iPad mini and now an image has leaked revealing a sleek form factor encased in a plastic enclosure...