2005 iPhone prototype used 5x7 display
updated 11:25 am EDT, Mon March 11, 2013
Device more closely resembled tablet computer
An alleged 2005 iPhone prototype, leaked by an ex-Apple worker, differs considerably from the product that shipped in 2007, notes ArsTechnica. Photos show a device with a 5x7 inch display, making it more comparable in size to a tablet. The point is consistent with a comment Steve Jobs once made at an AllThingsD conference, revealing that the iPad had started development first, but that along the way Apple decided to apply the technology to a phone, thinking that the timing for a tablet wasn't right.
The source of the prototype's photos says in fact that in 2005, "no one knew" what the hardware would actually evolve into. The person adds that it ran a "version of OS X;" iOS is based on OS X, but differs radically in many areas. The prototype also includes USB, Ethernet, and serial ports, but the source says that these were all intended to make development easier, rather than find their way into shipping products. People have sometimes complained that despite behaving like a computer, the iPad lacks things like a secondary USB port or a built-in SD card slot. Instead, any add-ons have to connect through Bluetooth, Lightning, or even the headphone jack.
The ARM processor in the prototype is believed to be a variant of the Samsung S3C2410, clocked between 200-233MHz. Apple did end up using a Samsung chip, but a 620MHz unit underclocked to 412MHz. The prototype further relied on ARM9 architecture, instead of the ARM11 design in the shipping iPhone.
