The iPhone 5 is a mysterious device, since no one seems to know what’s going on with it. Leaked cases seemed to show that it would be an all new handset, redesigned to look more like a mini iPad 2, with its Aluminum flat back with tapered edges. This was based on some device schematics leaked a while back. This latest physical mockup (shown in the images) has been created to illustrate what this mythical smartphone could look like.

Above is the home key comparison against the iPhone 4 and 3GS. If I’m 100% honest, it’s this redesigned home key that put doubts in my mind about the supposed iPhone 5. The round home key with the square icon is a trademark, and makes it instantly recognizable as an Apple iPhone. Would the design team at Cupertino really change it? The other problem is that recently, the most concrete looking “evidence” is pointing towards an iPhone 4S, not an iPhone 5. The Otterbox case leak and the product label that showed up earlier today are both more solid when used as proof than leaks of cases made by random third-party accessory manufacturers. Granted, Case-Mate’s accidental leak may mean something, but if that company is simply going on the schematics mentioned earlier, then the cases are just as misleading as any of the others.

"iPhone 5" compared with a Samsung Galaxy S II

What are your thoughts on this? Will we see an iPhone 5 at all this year? Or will Apple fill the gap with an iPhone 4S, and launch the 5 next year?

Via: Giga