Apple Accidentally Lists iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus Ahead of Its Wednesday Event

From a BGR report: Everyone makes mistakes from time to time, and it looks like the web team responsible for updating one of Apple's websites accidentally pushed an update live early this morning. Reddit user "Jaspergreenham" says he was browsing the accessories page on Apple's Hong Kong website when he stumbled across the two new phones. Notice anything wrong with that screen capture? The left-hand column on the site allows users to drill down based on device model, but there are two devices listed there that don't actually exist yet: The iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus.Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things.

Not hype generation at all

[Dunbal]

It was an "accident".

Re:Not hype generation at all

[cdrudge]

And it wasn't even the actual devices that were "accidentally" shown. It was for accessories that were compatible with the devices and nothing was indicated as belonging to those categories. In reality, the "accident" likely was them creating a category in their back end and marking it as enabled/visible before hiding it until Wednesday (or whenever).

Re:

[omnichad]

Or it never happened. I can pull up the page and with Chrome's inspector add the two options to the live HTML. Then I can take my own screenshot showing their new Android tablet as a category.

There aren't even any graphics involved in this leak - just something easily, easily faked.

Re:

[asalazar]

Oops! They did it again.

And I Quote

[Anonymous Coward]

"Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things."

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

Sounds like some slashdot editors got themselves a job at apple.

Re:

[unixisc]

Or vice versa ;-)

Leakiest release ever?

[jandrese]

I know the rumor mill usually has most of the details down well before the official announcement, but the iPhone 7 rumors have been seemingly more frequent and more detailed than the ones in the past. Is Apple feeding the rumor mill or have they just lost grip of their supply chain?

Re:Leakiest release ever?

[swb]

They always feed the rumor mill as it serves as free publicity to drum up interest in what isn't very interesting anymore.

The NY Times even reported on the iPhone 7 rumors, saying that the rumor mongering was stronger this time around than it has been and that's evidence that the brand hasn't lost that much cache.

You might even argue that the whole headphone jack removal was deliberate false information to gin up hype about the phone release. Better to have people arguing about the potential of you doing something unpopular than to not have people arguing about you at all.

IMHO, Apple has reached the limit of peak cycling for their phones. There's almost no incremental improvement they can deliver that means much anymore. They need either a quantum leap in design that limits on existing materials, manufacturing or power consumption can't deliver or need to start figuring out how to expand the walled garden of the phone as a functional platform instead of just seeing it as a version churn annuity.

Re:

[SailorSpork]

Good observation! This has clearly been a strategy for awhile, and has many benefits:
- Slowly keep the flames going over a preiod of time rather than have a big flare-up and burn-out all at once
- Give little pieces to particular influencers in the media to make friends so that big names are more likely to post positive reviews
- Get the biggest controversial pieces out there earlier (read: removing headphone jack) so that by the time the actually reveal is announced, it's old news that people have had a cha

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:

[nine-times]

the iPhone 7 rumors have been seemingly more frequent and more detailed than the ones in the past.

Maybe you weren't paying attention to the rumors in the past? The Mac rumor mill has been huge for decades. They don't always get things right, but the rumors have always been frequent and detailed.

Re:

[thegarbz]

but the iPhone 7 rumors have been seemingly more frequent and more detailed than the ones in the past.

We'll confirm if this is the case when a prototype iPhone 7 accidentally gets left in a bar and ends up in the hands of a reviewer.

why would you believe this guy?

[YesIAmAScript]

Come on. It's an easy photoshop and there's no backup info to indicate he ever saw it.

Have you not been on the internet before? Get wise.

Re:why would you believe this guy?

[allquixotic]

Not even Photoshop; using "Inspect Element" (Developer Tools) in any modern browser, you can easily add genuine-looking markup styled exactly the same as existing markup on the page (identical font, etc.) with 2 minutes of effort and basic HTML knowledge.

Re:

[Jonah Hex]

Thank you I came to make this exact pair of comments.

Re:

[drafalski]

What an odd thing to say... https://anonmgur.com/up/264639712e953d2e9a6b689fabc65d48.png [anonmgur.com]

Re:

[alvinrod]

If this were something earth-shattering, I'd be more skeptical, but Apple has been releasing new phones with a fairly standard pattern for years now. It would be bigger news if the new devices weren't going to be branded as iPhone 7, but instead something like iPhone 6X which would signal a departure from the existing pattern.

Even if this were a fabrication, it's a safe bet that it still turns out to be true. It might not be, in which case it's Yet Another Apple Rumor That Turned Out To Be Bullocks, but

Re:

[thegarbz]

Get wise.

Company about to launch product, accidentally or purposely hits website and generates some media attention. This is far more likely that someone putting even 2 minutes of effort into faking something like this.

What a scoop!

[Jeremi]

Through this leak we have learned that Apple is planning to announce an iPhone 7 and iPhone 7+ -- something nobody would ever have been able to guess otherwise!

Thanks Slashdot, for once again providing us with Stuff that Matters!

Re:What a scoop!

[nine-times]

I know! It caught me completely off guard, especially because Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things.

Re:

[cant_get_a_good_nick]

And a whole day in advance of the real unveiling. All that info, with so much time to use it... somehow.......

Re:

[ripvlan]

aw man - you beat me to it. Yes exactly !! Now we know that Apple is about to release an iPhone 7. What a scoop !!!

This is lesser news. There was an accident and the photo of the new item was available in the catalog for a brief time period. Oops.

What we also learned (if the photo was real) is that the phone will pretty much look like the iPhone 6, 6S. Others are predicting that the 7 will just be a 6SS++

The big scoop will be if that photo was fake and the new iPhone7 is square or has curved glass.

EDIT

[blackomegax]

"Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things." Slashdot editor is asleep at the wheel.

Re:

[fishscene]

I can't even decipher what that quote is supposed to mean. Any ideas?

Re:

[magarity]

Yes, the tense should be changed to make it the normal syntax of that expression, but WTF do they not normally miss out on? How does this expression belong in this context?

Re:

[nine-times]

"Apple [is detail oriented and therefore] usually doesn't miss these kinds of things."

Re:

[unixisc]

Does too!!!

I smell a lawsuit

[DickBreath]

Can Apple sue itself for this unauthorized disclosure of trade secret information?

Re:

[fishscene]

I can't imagine the lawsuit holding water as it was Apple itself that disclosed the information.

And zero fucks were given.

[ledow]

Seriously.

News For Nerds, Stuff That Matters

[Cajun Hell]

OMG!!!!!11 A consumer electronics company's sales site had a minor administrative error on a couple of teh SKUs! This is HYUUUGE! This is like the time Sorny's 1992 model walkerman was learned to be 2.2% lighter than the 1991 model due to a cost-reduced parts list! Apple: FAAAAAAACE!

Re:

[cdrudge]

Sorny's Walkerman models have never been lighter then the predecessor. They're latest mp3 Walkman weighs in at about a pound [techcrunch.com].

Re:

[baker_tony]

Capital letters much?

is it just me...

[slashmydots]

or does it seem like Apple just doesn't give a crap in general anymore? All their designs are lazy and their product launches have been unpopular. Then their services get hacked every other day their "new" macbooks are 4 years old, and I've heard reports that their customer service on the phone isn't as helpful as it used to be.

Re: is it just me...

[Lance McGrath]

Considering there was no question in that post, no matter how you may choose to misinterpret the first line, I'd ask the same question (re: English) of yourself.

Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things.

[kriston]

Apple doesn't usually misses out on these things.

Wow!

[The-Ixian]

So there WILL be an iPhone 7... This confirms that I truly do have the power to predict the future!

Re:

[unixisc]

Only question was whether it would be in tomorrow's announcement. Now we know it will!

Re:

[omnichad]

Why not? Microsoft is following Apple's lead for OS release names now. It's all version 10 and either a point release or a build number.

Slashdot Editor Interview Questions leaked!

[Overzeetop]

English is your:
a) First Language
b) Second Language
c) Third Language
d) Next language

Re:

[unixisc]

Yes

BGR is garbage

[SmaryJerry]

BGR make their name by spamming these nonsense articles about Apple rumors and this is the worst one yet. Nothing about this article is useful or reliable or even newsworthy. The fact this was linked in anything remotely reliable (like slashdot?) is so incredibly stupid. Seriously, never ever visit BGR, it is click bait 100% of the time.

Shouldn't Ireland sue BGR for this?

[WillAffleckUW]

Since all Apple "patents" and other IP are owned by invisible Irish firms that have no employees?

What a catastrophe!

[PapayaSF]

What a catastrophe! Now, nobody who reads tech blogs will buy an iPhone 6 in the next 24 hours. Imagine the earnings hit. Apple will now go the way of Osborne.