

Report: Apple Loses iPhone 5 Prototype. Yes, in a Bar. - nlh
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2392244,00.asp

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HaloZero
People keep seeming to talk about how "Apple is not this sloppy".

It wasn't Apple, it was some employee who like all of us, probably had a bit
too much to drink and left his phone. Or maybe it got pick pocketed? Honestly,
this only a recent occurrence because Apple iPhones are small enough to
forget, unlike laptops, and people actually care about them, unlike the latest
ipod nano/mini/shuffle/touch.

And it's only happened twice in a period of what? 4 years of iPhones?

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vacri
My company creates a device the size of an iphone, and we've never left one in
a bar, whether a _stock production_ unit, or a _super-secret, heavily-NDA'd,
jackbooted-police-summoning_ prototype.

~~~
nknight
How many dozens of your employees walk around with the device every day in the
course of their routine non-work-related lives?

Are the devices a ubiquitous, integrated part of daily life that reach the
point of barely being thought about?

Are they even something one pulls out and uses in a bar?

~~~
benjoffe
Also an important question: "Does your company have anywhere near as many
employees as Apple?"

~~~
skeletonjelly
This implies that every employee of Apple carries around an iPhone 5 in public
for testing.

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zach
Any night that ends with losing a confidential Apple prototype device was
probably a heck of a night.

Apple needs some kind of proximity sensor linked to these field testers'
keychain or something. Maybe they just need to upgrade Find My iPhone to
include a self-destruct feature.

~~~
sasha-dv
Or they need a new marketing ploy.

P.S. Why are all the comments suggesting that this is not an accidental loss
down-voted?

~~~
teej
Because honestly, any company with a warchest like Apple's can afford real
marketing. Who is this supposed to be targeted at anyway? The readers of
Gizmodo and pcmag? Last time I checked, those arent even close to Apple's core
market.

~~~
joelthelion
How is this not "real marketing"? It's on the front page of many websites. I
don't see what "real" expensive marketing would do better.

~~~
intranation
Faux Apple mocks and speculation about the new iPhone are on the front of most
gadget websites anyway, so I fail to see how they'd gain anything extra from
this.

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nextparadigms
This joke is getting a little old. What is the chance for an employee to own
an iPhone 5 and actually lose it? again. Apple is probably the most skilled
company at giving out "leaks", because many times people don't even realize
the leak was seeded by Apple.

~~~
sixcorners
Seeded by Apple? Didn't Apple have police break in and sieze six computers and
a bunch of other electronic stuff from that Gizmodo person's house?

~~~
joelthelion
What does that prove?

~~~
sixcorners
Well, if it was all happening as Apple intended, why did they do it? Shits and
giggles?

~~~
joelthelion
To make you believe the leak wasn't intentional?

Look, all of this is complete speculation, there is just no way to know if the
leak is or is not a marketing gig; so I don't think a lot can be gained by
arguing over it :)

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tintin
Not in a bar, in a restaurant. Very sensational headline.

Original report: [http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20099899-37/apple-loses-
an...](http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20099899-37/apple-loses-another-
unreleased-iphone-exclusive/?tag=topStories)

~~~
vacri
Your link shows a photo of the location, which has a man sitting at a bar and
a bartender. When you go to their website <http://www.cava22sf.com/> there is
a big ad for "Happy Hour"

This is hardly "very sensational".

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napierzaza
I can't really come up with an existing iPhone model that sells for 200$, so I
don't see how one from the future would sell so cheaply. This sounds like a
garbage report.

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jpr
Ugh, anyone know of something along the lines Apple-haters -mailing list or
something? I need a place where I can be reasonably sure that people who I am
talking with aren't macfags.

~~~
jpr
Btw, downvoting just reaffirms my judgement about your appletardness.

~~~
corin_
Actually it just confirms that people on HN don't want you spouting moronic
shit, regardless of our feelings towards Apple (personally I hate their
products, and I felt very good downvoting you twice).

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dotcoma
Either it's a smart marketing strategy, or they have a drinking problem.

~~~
dotcoma
Can't say negative things about Apple. Sorry, I forgot.

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jondot
Sounds like a certain bar needs to be bought by Apple.

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choixer
It's definately looks like a marketing of upcomming iPhone.

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linker3000
HTC user: Damn, Can you get a signal - I can barely get one bar here

iPhone user: Yep, I get to one bar and always lose it too.

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qq66
Apple is not this sloppy. Controlled leak.

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joelthelion
Why do you think these "leaks" happen every time? They do it on purpose,
because it gets everybody excited about their product.

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oemera
If this is true I pretty sure that the iPhone 5 is really a improvement to the
iPhone 4. If it would look like a new iPhone model no-one would sell it for
200 bucks. Seems that Apple is doing a great job hiding the lost phone.

