Photos have appeared online of what is said to be the rear shell of the upcoming iPhone 5. According to MacRumors, a repair firm specializing in iPhone repairs, iFixyouri, has been given info on the part.
Purported iPhone 5 pictures reveal rounder edges similar to Samsung Galaxy S3
The shell appears to be constructed of aluminum alloy and reveals the rear panel along with the sides. There were previous claims that the iPhone 5 would come with an integrated metal panel, so the leaked photos of the shell are consistent with this. The difference being that it appears a different finish has been used.
If the leaked photos are to be believed the shell will include a smaller dock connector port. The shell also reveals a large speaker grille and grilles for the microphone. It is thought that the space saved by making the dock connector smaller will be used for enhancing performance of the speaker in the iPhone 5.
The part is said to be available in both black and white and two more colors which have not been revealed. Another anomaly is the headphone jack which is seen on the bottom of the shell instead of the top. All other iPhones released to date have had the jack on the top edge of the phone.
Now what’s interesting about the design is that it seems to be headed back to a more rounder body. Unlike the iPhone 4S which was more ‘brick-ish’ than its predecessor the 3GS, the iPhone 5 exterior reminds us of the recently released Samsung Galaxy S3 which is also tall and soft around the edged. In fact, the Samsung Galaxy S3 also came from a more square form factor i.e the Galaxy S2, so it looks like the current trend for 2012.
We’ll keep you posted as more develops.
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