New iPhone 5 Part Leaks – Display Shield

Thanks to a leak in China, it appears that the next-generation iPhone from Apple uses an additional hardware part not found in older-generation versions.

Stemming from Chinese site iColorOS, the leak in question shows numerous hardware parts that have been reported on previously. However, one of them hasn’t been documented yet.

The large black slate you see to the left is supposedly a shield for the precious 4-inch Retina display. The hardware is new, in that it is a standalone part in the iPhone 5. The iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S boast a similar feature that comes as part of the entire chassis.

The image also shows various cables, sensors and buttons, as well as the big front glass panel that covers the actual display. The SIM card tray is also visible in the leaked photo.