French site NWE claims to have found photos of a finished production model of the casing of the 4.7-inch version of the iPhone 6, shown in gray.
While not revealing anything new about the overall design of the phone, it does appear to give a much clearer view of how the antenna breaks are handled, with a significantly more subtle appearance than had been suggested by some earlier leaked parts, mockups and renders – as seen in the photo below …
Breaks are needed in an all-metal casing to allow the transmission of radio signals, and there’s been a lot of concern about the aesthetics of these based on versions with either white or black lines. If this is indeed the real thing, we suspect a lot of those concerns may be allayed.
The degree to which the breaks stand out does appear to depend on the angle at which the light hits the casing, less noticeable here at the top of the phone than at the bottom. You can see a couple of interior shots over at NWE, and iPhonote is showing a side view of what appears to be the same case:
Claimed parts shown on the same site yesterday appear to show that the iPhone 6 will be available in similar or identical colors to the iPhone 5s. It is also looking near-certain that the traditional annual rumors about the inclusion of NFC for mobile payment are finally true, with the Financial Times lending its weight to earlier reports from Venture Beat, GeekBar, Wired and others.
We’ll find out for sure at the Flint Center in Cupertino on 9th September.
