Next-gen iPhone leaked?

Left in a bar by an Apple employee, an iPhone prototype has a front-facing camera and HD display, among other features. But is it real?

Gizmodo acquired the device, which was disguised to look like a 3GS, but which has a host of different features. While its authenticity was debated, the blog took apart the device to find a number of Apple-branded components that seem real. 

And with more proof that the phone isn’t a fake, Apple sent the blog a letter formally requesting that the prototype be returned. 

The prototype (pictured) contains a number of new features and a redesigned shape that makes the phone thinner with less rounded edges. It also includes a front-facing camera for video chat, an improved back camera with a flash, a Micro-SIM instead of the standard SIM used in previous models, an improved display with higher resolution screen and a secondary microphone. 

In regard to improvements, the prototype iPhone has a battery that is 16% larger and a flat back that is either glass, ceramic or plastic. 

While the phone was remotely disabled before Gizmodo looked at its OS, the person who originally found the device said it was running iPhone OS 4.0. 

Gizmodo has more photos and video of the device and details how it was lost by an Apple software engineer in a California bar. 

Though the official word is that the iPhone was lost by an employee, some bloggers think that it might have been leaked in order to drum up excitement for the US launch, which is thought to happen within a few months.