In one of the weirdest Apple leak sagas in recent memory, what appears to be a 4th-generation iPhone prototype surfaced over the weekend, was summarily debunked and then “confirmed” as real all over again.

The saga began when a lost handset believed to be a 4th-generation iPhone was discovered on the floor of a San Jose bar inside of an iPhone 3G case, according to Engadget and others. The phone appeared to be operational at first, but coincidentally decided to stop booting once it became public. Engadget’s tipster claimed the unit features the front-facing camera many iPhone users have been waiting for and a strange 80GB of storage (which is believed to be a typo).

Then, the device was dismissed as a fake -- a Japanese copycat -- and the story was forgotten for a few hours.



That is, until an eagle-eyed Engadget editor spotted what looked like the same device sitting next to an iPad prototype in a photo first leaked the night before that device was finally unveiled to the world (above). Engadget has now doubled down and convinced that their tipster now has the real deal.

Daring Fireball scribe John Gruber also seems convinced, having “called around” to his sources and claiming that the device is “a unit Apple is very interested in getting back.” However, Gruber believes the reported 4th-gen iPhone is not a final production unit but rather a prototype, based on the very different sides of the device, which also features a “glass” back that could point to a 2006 Apple patent for “high-durability ceramic enclosures” that are transparent to radio signals.

“I think it is the real deal in terms of the internals and display being next-gen iPhone hardware, and the new glass back,” Gruber writes. “A front-facing camera and 960 x 640 display are two things I believe are slated for the next iPhone.”

iPhone leaks have become an annual ritual, with plenty of photo fakes and artist’s renderings of what Apple might be coming out with in early summer. You might call the first half of the year “leak season,” since the rumors tend to ramp up quicker and burn hotter as it gets closer to the time Apple actually announces new hardware.

(Images courtesy of Engadget)