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Tag: prototypes

  • Turn-Based Call Of Duty Prototype Footage Leaked

    A long time ago before the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Activision had big plans for the franchise. While they had Infinity Ward and Treyarch working on the first-person shooter aspects of the title, the publisher hired on Sledgehammer Games to create a third-person Call of Duty title. On top of that, there were some rumors of a turn-based Call of Duty title in the works.

    While the fate of Sledgehammer’s third-person project is still up in the air as they were taken off of it to help Infinity Ward finish MW3, we now have proof of the turn-based game’s existence and subsequent cancellation. Military shooter fan site MP1st has found footage of the turn-based Call of Duty title.

    The game is obviously set during World War II and it sure looks like a turn-based game. The game was being developed by Vicarious Visions, the Activision developer that usually handles the Nintendo Wii ports of its titles. This would have been their first major primary console release in a long time, so it’s too bad the game was cancelled.

    It makes you wonder why Activision cancelled the project. It makes most sense that the Call of Duty crowd wouldn’t be interested in a tactical turn-based shooter. Still, it would have been a nice change of pace for the franchise.

    Twitter user superannuation was the first to uncover the project. The tweet prior to the leak said that he had been sitting on it for a while.

    Check out the footage and see what could have been:

    What do you think of a turn-based Call of Duty title? Do you think it would have been a good side project for the franchise? Let us know in the comments.

    [h/t: Reddit]

  • iPhone 5 Rumor: Design Prototype Has Larger Screen, Thinner Frame

    If you think that you’ve been following the swirls of rumors surrounding the possible new design of the iPhone 5, just wait until you see what the folks over at BENM.at have done.

    Using all of the most relevant hints and rumors, they have created an iPhone 5 prototype that basically looks like the phone that most users are hoping for. Here’s how they did it:

    Based on CAD designs, hardware components, several leaked hints, cases and recent, believable mockups we created a three-dimensional computer model. This virtual model was then used to build a very detailed, true prototype that you can hold in your own two hands.

    The process to create this prototype is the same that’s used to create the iPad. The back was machined from a sold block of aluminium, which was later treated with glass pearls to get the same slightly rough touch that we already know from the iPad.

    Like many rumors, the prototype is thinner and wider (59.94 mm wider). It also has the much talked about teardrop design with a slightly thicker top and a slightly thinner bottom.

    It also sports a larger screen – 4 inches to be exact. That’s .5 inches larger than what’s currently on the iPhone 4. Rumors have discussed a modified home button for months, and this prototype delivers. The home button is now elongated and rectangular and it is no longer mechanical. Instead of having to actually push it, it is just touch sensitive, like the rest of the screen.

    Check out the prototype in this video. As you would expect, it’s not functional, but it’s cool to see all of the speculations put into an actual device –

    Will the iPhone 5 look anything like that? In the video, they claim that they are 98% sure that their prototype is spot-on. I don’t know, maybe something was lost in the translation. One thing we do know is that we won’t have to wait much longer to see what the next-gen iPhone looks like. Apple has announced their big “Let’s talk iPhone” media event, scheduled for Tuesday, October 4th in Cupertino.

    Rumors were able to pin the announcement date and if the iPhone 5 is released soon after the unveiling (as it should be), rumors would have also predicted the release date pretty accurately. The latest hints point at the new phone hitting the shelves on Friday, October 14th.

    The design has been a little less agreed upon. For everyone that says it’s going to be a radical shift from the iPhone 4 design, there’s a handful of reports that the new phone will look similar to its predecessors, only bringing some hardware changes to the table.

    What do you think of this prototype? If the iPhone 5 was unveiled next Tuesday and it looked just like this, would you be happy? Let us know in the comments.

  • iPhone 5 Rumor: San Francisco Police Know Nothing About Lost Prototype

    Yesterday we all experienced a bout of deja vu when the rumor emerged that another Apple employee had apparently had too much to drink and misplaced a new iPhone prototype in a bar.

    Last year an Apple software engineer lost the iPhone 4 prototype in a German beer garden in Redwood, California. The finders subsequently sold the device to Gizmodo, who ended up breaking the news of the secret specs of the device before its launch.

    Yesterday, CNET reported that an unnamed Apple employee lost a prototype for an upcoming iPhone in a “tequila lounge” in San Francisco called Cava 22. They indicated that the phone has possibly been sold on Craigslist for $200. All of this reportedly happened in July.

    Quoting an individual source, CNET detailed an investigative operation that involved both Apple and the San Francisco Police Department. The source said that once Apple electronically traced the location of the missing device, their investigators along with SFPD visited the location where they believed the iPhone prototype was being kept.

    With the help of the SFPD, Apple investigators apparently questioned a twenty-something man about the phone, to which he denied any knowledge. They then searched the “two-floor single family home” and came up empty.

    Of course, we were skeptical from the beginning on this rumor. Single sources have to be considered very carefully. It also seemed odd to this writer that nobody has yet to come forward with the prototype, if this misplacement really did occur back in July. The time to capitalize on the find might be drawing to a close – many feel the iPhone 5 will launch in early to mid October.

    Today we learn that the San Francisco Police Department is saying that they have no record of any such investigation.

    Talking to SF Weekly, SFPD spokesman Albie Esparza denies that they helped Apple with any such sweep of a house, looking for a missing phone. The CNET report mentioned that no official police report was filed during the investigation, but Esparza says that there are no records for the visit or even of a dispatch confirming the trip to the suspect’s home.

    So, either the SFPD is not being very forthcoming, some officers under top brass carried out the investigation under the radar and off the books, or CNET’s source is full of it.

    If a prototype finds its way onto the internet, I guess we will have our answer then.

  • iPhone 5 Rumor: Did a Prototype Get Lost in a Tequila Bar?

    UPDATE: The SFPD responds to reports about the missing prototype.

    ORIGINAL ARTICLE: At this moment it’s possible that an upcoming iPhone, possibly the iPhone 5, might be hanging out in the unswept corners of a Mexican restaurant. Or it might be in the hands of someone ready to make a big score.

    Or the prototype might not be lost at all. Such is the rub when it comes to single sources.

    According to CNET, an Apple employee misplaced the unreleased iPhone at Cava 22, a “tequila lounge” in San Francisco’s Mission district. The source indicated that the iPhone might have been sold on Craigslist for 200 bucks.

    CNET has more details on how Apple reacted to the loss of their prototype. Apparently, once the unnamed employee manned up the courage to tell his bosses what he had done, Apple contacted the San Francisco Police Department. Apple electronically traced the iPhone to a “two-floor single family home” in the Bernal Heights neighborhood. With the help of the SFPD, Apple’s investigators went to the house.

    A twenty-something opened the door and acknowledged being at Cava 22 on the night in question but denied knowing anything about an iPhone prototype. He allowed police to search his house but they came up empty. According to the source, Apple offered the man money for the device, but he stuck with his story.

    If this all sounds somewhat familiar, that’s because this has happened before – under almost identical circumstances.” Last year, an Apple software engineer lost the iPhone 4 prototype in a German beer garden in Redwood, California. That prototype ended up falling into the hands of Gizmodo, who leaked all the juicy new details of the device.

    If this whole thing is true, nobody’s saying anything about it. Apple, Craigslist and the SFPD are all keeping quiet. The owner of Cava 22 has said that he remembers a guy calling multiple times about a lost iPhone. But who really knows if that had anything to do with this prototype? I’m sure plenty of people have too much tequila and misplace their mobile device.

    Did all of this really happen? Is there a prototype of the iPhone 5 out there somewhere? Maybe. I mean, it has happened before. If the secret phone was obtained sometime in July, however, it is kind of strange that nobody has come forward with it yet. The time to cash in on the find might be coming to a close. Most reports put the iPhone 5 release sometime in October.