Edible Apple

Though the next-gen iPhone won’t be hitting stores this Summer, new information about its design are slowly starting to creep in. Over the weekend, GadgetsDNA alerted us to the above iPhone case which appeared on Alibaba. As you can tell, not only does the iPhone in the photo above have a larger edge to edge screen (as has been rumored), but the case has two openings at the top – one for the camera and one for a separate camera flash.

Alibaba claims that this case is for the “iPhone 5G.”

1.100% brand new high quality crystal case for iphone 5g .
2. Provides a comfortable grip, added protection against accidental drops .
3. Perfectly fits the iPhone 5g, easy to insert and remove.

Note that the above photo is merely a mockup, but keep in mind that case manufacturers often get early access to Apple’s hardware designs via rogue employees at Foxconn, Apple’s manufacturing partner. Indeed, just a few weeks ago Foxconn arrested 3 individuals who leaked out the design of the iPad 2 to accessory makers.

In any event, there have been rumors that the next iPhone will be a minor upgrade and will be dubbed the iPhone 4S as it will mostly sport spec upgrades such as the inclusion of Apple’s A5 chip, HSPA+ support, and rumor has it, an 8 megapixel flash. These rumors, though, have relayed that the next-gen iPhone will not sport any significant cosmetic changes.

Overall, the consensus is that the next-gen iPhone will sport a larger screen, but if rumors of an iPhone 4S model are indeed true, is it possible that Apple might be planning to release 2 iPhone models in the coming months? To date, Apple has done exceedingly well by delivering a new iPhone model and aggressively cutting the price on all previous models. But with Android doing well themselves, perhaps Apple is looking to diversify its iPhone offerings to consumers. This, of course, would be a departure from Apple’s underlying desire to have a simplistic product line but would not be all that different from Apple’s strategy with the iPod wherein it began releasing varying models once the device supplanted itself as the defacto MP3 player to beat.

Again, with no iPhone summer release this year, we probably won’t be seeing a fast clip of rumors coming in through the pipeline. One interesting story from last week, however, relayed that that next iPhone would be available on both Sprint and T-Mobile. If true, this would finally make the iPhone available to everyone in the United States after years of exclusivity on AT&T, and now Verizon as well.