Well, I'm not too surprised at Apple's stock dropping. The reason Apple events are so popular (fanboyism/Steve's reality distortion field aside) is because of the reveals. Now some employee "loses" a prototype in a bar and their thunder is stolen. There's not a whole left for Apple's reveal at this point, except to confirm what's already been sussed out and maybe correct a few mistaken assumptions that may have been made. (Is that a noise cancelling mic on top or a plug for an external antenna? Is that a front-facing camera or a new sensor of some sort?) Much noise is being made right now on Giz and Engadget that this was staged to build buzz. It's a little tinfoil-hatty for me, given that high secrecy and tight security is Apple's calling card. On the other hand, the idea that some employee was so bone-headed as to lose a high security prototype at a freaking bar sounds just as full of shenanigans. On the gripping hand, Apple's changed directions on their industrial design, and it it is exactly because of Apple's secretive, secure reputation that this would be a surefire way of drawing big-time attention to a press-stopping, damn-the-luck physical "leak" that gets all the Apple and CE blocks flapping their digital gums. On the left foot, and building on the idea that it's staged, this could be a red herring, too. Hard to say for sure which way to lean at this point, given that it's all predicated on the idea that this is the real deal in the first place.
I think if a credible site such as Gizmado was confident enough to go out on a limb and say that "This Is Apple's Next iPhone," they probably made darn sure that it was legitimate. What is more interesting to me is that if this is in fact the new iPhone — there is always some doubt — what is Apple going to do in response? The features have been leaked, the hype has reached a premature peak (to some extent at least), and if they only announce these improvements there will be very little wow-factor and very little overall excitement. Hopefully (from the perspective of a consumer) they are scrambling to improve something or add something past what is on this nearly finished prototype so they have SOMETHING new to show. Doubtful that this is happening, but a boy can dream.
Yeah, I was wondering about the same thing. We haven't yet seen the device actually running, so maybe they are planning to show off 4.0 and some specific features of this device (i.e - video calls etc). We still need the exact details announced by Apple, as Gizmondo are unsure about some things, for example, the resolution, the cameras, the processing power, the battery power etc. They'll also probably want to show off the latest games/apps in all HD glory. So I'm guessing there'll be plenty more to look forward to in the next keynote.
I hope this isn't the final design! I like to be surprised every year to see apples latest creations. It's like seeing all your presents before Christmas and trying to act surprised!!
Just a quick thought: To all of those thinking that this new design couldn't possibly be the next iPhone, consider that Apple has yet to make any dramatic changes to the hardware thus far. If the next iPhone does in fact feature a front facing camera, flash for photos, and a nicer screen, Apple would probably want to revamp the appearance to accentuate the fact that this is a big update.
Wouldn't be surprised to see a lawsuit over this. I'm all for leaks when they're shedding light on something controversial or in some way benefiting readers, but not when they do pretty much nothing but expose a company's work/plans to its competition. No doubt some here will disagree with me, but I think the trade secrets act exists for a very good reason.
As much as I think the trade secrets act has a perfectly valid place in the market, if a company's trade secrets get out because some employee screwed up, and it gets into the hands of the press, then the first amendment takes over. Giz will have to give the device back to Apple (as the letter GTX just posted predictably demands) and Apple could try and issue a taketown notice, but the first amendment will shield them from legal repercussions as long as they did in fact obtain under the honest impression that whomever sold it to them did indeed find it in a bar because some careless employee lost it there. The actual truth of the matter is irrelevant so long as Giz got it in good faith.
Unfortunately it doesn't work like that if Apple considers the device stolen. Even if you obtained stolen goods in good faith (i.e. you didn't know the goods were stolen) the law says you have to give it back to the rightful owner. If Giz tried to charge Apple for it they could be charged with extortion.
firstly, gizmondo didnt found the device secondly, theft means someone steal them from his pocket, from house,to rob banks ........ etc if you undearsteand.... Negociate it's the key .
Gizmodo paid the dude who found the device. And regardless, if it's considered stolen property it doesn't matter who has it or how it was obtained, the law says that once you know the item you have is stolen, you must give it back or you get charged for possession of stolen property. And in this case stolen could easily mean it was taken off Apple grounds without permission. Borrowing without asking, or even having permission to borrow within certain parameters (i.e. "use it only on our property") and then breaking those parameters (taking it outside the property), can still be considered stealing. We also don't know if the guy who lost it was supposed to have it in the first place. Either way it's a moot point. Apple calls it stolen, so in the eyes of the law Giz must give it back or be charged.
Yes, but it could have been stolen in the first place (and not found in a bar) and then sold to Gizmondo, and therefore it must be returned to it's rightful owner. For example if you bought something from a dodgy looking guy who robs things from people and sells them on, you would have to give it back to the original owner if the police found out that it was stolen.
I was talking more about their decision to publish everything they found out about the device. Honestly I can't see how what they did benefits the public in any way - it doesn't reveal anything that we wouldn't have found out at the official announcement, or anything that Apple were doing that would have had a negative effect on potential buyers - all it does is lay their plans bare for the competition. What they did was probably legal, but it was still pretty lame.
They're a tech blog. This is stuff people are dying to know. Publishing draws (and did draw) literally millions of hits, and hits = revenue. That's about as uncomplicated as it gets, and reason enough for any commercial provider of information to do anything. Heck, since Giz did their exposé this story has hit live news broadcasts, so clearly this is in-demand information and exactly the sort of thing the press salivates over. Whether it was right or not is a question of ethics and the topic of a different conversation, but it certainly wasn't illegal and absolutely in-line with what every other news site would have done in their place no differently than the way paparazzi will do anything to dig up celebrity dirt.
iPhone 4G Gizmodo "found" an iPhone 4G and it has a drastic change in design. http://gizmodo.com/5520164/this-is-apples-next-iphone
