Lost iPhone Prototype Spurs Police Probe

CNET News:

Silicon Valley police are investigating what appears to be a lost Apple iPhone prototype purchased by a gadget blog, a transaction that may have violated criminal laws, a law enforcement official told CNET on Friday.

Read the whole story: CNET News

Comments

[Faxus]

08:00 AM on 04/27/2010

Pardone me for posting off topic, but some of the flash ads, when they pop open, are obstructing the action buttons of the other flash features. Honestly Arrianna, there's really just too much flash on these pages! You have reached a point where I am unwilling to navigate through it all to reach the content.

[Faxus]

07:56 AM on 04/27/2010

If you find a working cell phone you are supposed to return it to it's owner. It's a easy thing to do. If you decide to sell it then you are a criminal. If the folks you sold it to know that it wasn't yours then they are criminals as well.

[universalblind]

02:58 AM on 04/27/2010

On the other hand after reading the thread, I am more conscious of the fact that the guy was an idiot to buy the phone and post photos in such detail online. Apple could have been a little cooler about this though. Seems like the followed the Dick Cheney approach to setting things right. Hey Steve, remember? ... "Think different."

[universalblind]

02:54 AM on 04/27/2010

i am writing this on a Mac, have five Iphones in the family but Apple is not cool and hip anymore. I am starting to get sick of their tactics. Would rather use something more clunky but more in tune with the modern world. I liked Google's move in China. Definitely will start revisiting Android. I love Apple tech but these guys are becoming major pr----s. Jobs is becoming what Jobs used to complain about.

[hype-free]

04:53 AM on 04/26/2010

Finders keepers does not work with a lost but identifiable cell phone.

It was simple thief and then payment for stolen goods.

The fact the this idiot bought stolen goods and brags about it in print, makes him one of the dumbest people on the planet.

Lock him up boys!

[doneit]

04:46 AM on 04/26/2010

Apple is not going to take me for a fool with its iPhone gimmick. Everyone knows that those phones are made in China and there must be a least a thousand blue print all over China. The fabrics in China are already mass producing their own version of iPhone with a different name. http://www.digitalundivide.com

[jcollell]

08:08 PM on 04/25/2010

I would submit that this is an elaborate hoax planned by Apple. The device may indeed by a prototype but this whole story of the phone being lost at a Redwood City bar sounds fishy and contrived. So why would Apple purposely float the prototype? Well, think about it. Secret prototype is found in Bar, Gizmodo happens to get its hands on it. Intrigue, espionage, or plain stupidity? Is it the real deal or an elaborate hoax? Now you basically own the technology news cycle and you build up buzz and excitement. And this serves as a test bed of the potential new features for the 4G. Kinda of a preview before the preview. Well, there you have it. The prototype is real but the factors leading to the phone being lost and found were concocted by Apple. Brilliant marketing. At least that is my take

http://www.youspar.com/index.php?view=165

[Saad Ahmad]

09:45 PM on 04/25/2010

Most people in the Tech community believe that this indeed was unintended. Since now the police are involved probably means this wasn't a publicity stunt.

[jsgaetano]

05:20 PM on 04/25/2010

They should start by seeing if anyone was thrown out of a skyscraper window recently.

[vintagefunk]

01:09 PM on 04/25/2010

I freely admit -- I am salivating over this phone! I have a 3G, and will be out of contract by summer -- nice and ripe for Apple's new offering.

This one's a real beauty, too. I hope the theft/misappropriation by Gizmodo & Co. won't force Apple to change the design too much, and delay it release!

The silver lining in all of this for me is that I wasn't sure if/when a new phone was coming - now I'm looking forward to this one.

[Blixa]

08:40 PM on 04/24/2010

Nick Denton has usually come out on top when there've been tangles like this... I find it hard to believe that they entered into this without having a plan to cover their behinds. I'm sure it will just be the middleman who gets the shaft. But I've been wrong before.

[GoDogGo]

07:56 PM on 04/24/2010

They may have paid $5000 but they bought themselves a multi-million dollar headache. Anyone with even a tacit understanding of the law knows that what they did was massively irresponsible at best.

The act of opening it, photographing the parts and putting them online? Pure folly. An invitation to legal and fiscal disaster.

[WilliamTheV]

03:08 PM on 04/25/2010

they didn't know it was the real deal until they did it.

[jsgaetano]

05:22 PM on 04/25/2010

Well the seller stated it was left behind in a bar. So they were knowingly purchasing a stolen device.

[GoDogGo]

09:42 PM on 04/25/2010

If you believe that, truly, you're a fool.

Why else would they pay $5000 for a $200 iphone? The seller told them what it was - an Apple prototype - and they bought it anyway. That's knowingly purchasing stolen property and that's a felony.

Then, AFTER they knew for certain, they posted photos of its internals (trade secrets) and publicized those details along with their ownership. Sorry, but that's just begging for criminal charges.

[caad4]

06:39 PM on 04/24/2010

It was lost at the Flower Haus Stadt (sp?) on Broadway in RWC. Excellent brats and FANTASTIC beer. Very low key cool place.

[Friction57]

03:09 PM on 04/25/2010

all served with a side of iPhone

[Lohikaarme]

05:02 PM on 04/24/2010

I am sure that losing this phone has bothered a lot to the supreme control freak of the Republic of Applestan.

[hype-free]

05:00 AM on 04/26/2010

We forgot that most PC fanboys don't mind paying for stolen computer parts from the swap meets or out of the back of a car!

I'll look for your cell phone at the swap meet.

I see your from the closed backward republic of MS.

[374662]

02:54 PM on 04/24/2010

When I first heard about the lost iPhone, I kept thinking about the fact the story begins with "A guy goes into a bar . . ."

I wonder what happened to the guy who lost it, why was he carrying it around with him and was the company aware of it? You'd think they'd have very strict controls on prototypes since it puts their technology and product at risk if lost or stolen. They are lucky in this case it ended up being publicized. It could have ended up in the hands of someone who kept quiet but duplicated the functionality.

[zelduh]

03:51 PM on 04/25/2010

What happened to the guy who lost the prototype? He was fired.

[374662]

05:02 PM on 04/25/2010

Thanks! I missed that news. I guess it answers the other questions that he wasn't supposed to be taking it with him. (And should have been more careful with it when he did.)

[374662]

08:57 AM on 04/27/2010

Heard on the news today he was NOT fired. They didn't say if he is doing the same job, if he had permission to take the phone with him, etc. The only comment was that he still works there.

[Unimatrix42]

02:53 PM on 04/24/2010

Gawker Media are the lowest of the low. I hope Apple pursues every possible civil and criminal remedy against them.