China churns out new imagery suggesting Apple will go with a rounded-edge design

Aug 4, 2012 17:20 GMT  ·  By

As the next Apple product launch draws near, new photos of alleged iPad mini shells have emerged, suggesting the next-generation Apple tablet will have a rounded-edge design and a diminutive form factor.

The images you see above were obtained by China’s Apple.pro via social site Weibo. The photos purport to show the aluminium case housing the internals of the "iPad mini", a rumoured product that many analysts believe Apple will introduce this fall, perhaps alongside the next-generation iPhone.

The design seems unfinished and rough, making the leak quite unconvincing. The Apple logo on the back, for example, seems out of proportion (i.e. too big for this form factor). The lack of tapering, which has become an ubiquitous design element throughout Apple’s entire product line, depletes this leak of even more credibility.

Nonetheless, we wouldn’t deny our readers any potential leak that might prove to hold some important aspects for future reference.

Update: not to mention there's no camera hole on this thing (credit goes to Jon on Twitter for pointing this one out).