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Alleged iPhone 5 case design points to big changes

A U.K. Web site, Mobile Fun, says a Chinese case manufacturer sent it a design document for an iPhone 5 case. It points to a big redesign for the iPhone 5. Is it real or not?

David Carnoy Executive Editor / Reviews
Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET's Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable reviewer of mobile accessories and portable audio products, including headphones and speakers. He's also an e-reader and e-publishing expert as well as the author of the novels Knife Music, The Big Exit and Lucidity. All the titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, Nook e-books and audiobooks.
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David Carnoy
U.K.-based Mobile Fun claims this is a schematic for a new iPhone 5 case. Mobile Fun

Real or not? That's the question we always ask when we see design schematics, drawings, or mockups of upcoming cases for upcoming Apple products. But in the past, a few of those schematics have proved to be reliable previews of the design of next iPhone or iPad.

In this instance, the source of the alleged CAD drawing for a new case design for the iPhone 5 comes from a U.K. blog, Mobile Fun, which says a Chinese case manufacturer passed it on. Then Mobile Fun separately received a mockup (below) from another case manufacturer.

Related links
• iPhone 5 rumor roundup
• iPhone 5: 20 most-wanted features

The renderings point to a major redesign of the iPhone with a curved back and a larger screen (rumors of such design changes have been making the rounds for months). Also, the home button is larger, suggesting it's a possible mini touch pad that would enable gesture-based controls.

Again, we have have no way of knowing if these images are real or fake, but they do appear to fall in line with the rumors that the iPhone 5 will be thinner and look substantially different from the iPhone 4. No word yet on when the next iPhone will be unveiled, but all signs point to a September launch.

 
An alleged mockup for an iPhone 5 case from a second manufacturer. Mobile Fun

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