Images of Unreleased iPhone 5s in Black and Slate Shared Online

[MacRumors]

Twitter user @DongleBookPro has today shared images of a prototype iPhone 5s in an unreleased Black and Slate color.

The iPhone 5s was launched in September 2013. The device featured Touch ID, a 64-bit processor, and a True Tone LED flash for the first time. Other new features included a five-element lens with an f/2.2 aperture, a 15 percent larger camera sensor, Burst Mode, and Slo-Mo 720p video capture at 120 frames per second.

The iPhone 5s offered Gold and Space Gray color options for the first time, and was also available in Silver. The previous-generation iPhone 5 was available in White and Silver, and Black and Slate. This prototype iPhone 5s is extremely unusual as it uses the iPhone 5's Black and Slate color option.

While it is possible that Apple was considering offering the iPhone 5s in Black and Slate, before opting for Space Gray instead, DongleBookPro suggests that the color was likely used to help conceal the next-generation device during development.

In addition, it is also notable that the prototype iPhone 5s was manufactured in December 2012, a mere three months after the launch of the iPhone 5 and nine months before it would be announced. This offers some indication of how far ahead the iPhone's development cycle runs.

The iPhone 5's Black and Slate color option was ultimately dropped in favor of Space Gray on the iPhone 5s, which has generally been a mainstay of iPhone color options since. The only models since then to not be available in a Space Gray option were the iPhone 7, iPhone 11, iPhone 12, and iPhone 12 Pro.

Black and Slate was among the more short-lived Apple device colors, with the option only being available for the iPhone 5, first-generation iPad mini, and fifth-generation iPod Touch. The finish also spurned "scuffgate," where some iPhone 5 users complained about the tendency of the Black and Slate finish to be easily chipped, scratched, and scuffed, which may have contributed to it being discontinued.

DongleBookPro regularly posts images of unreleased Apple devices and prototypes, such as a first-generation iPod touch prototype with a 2013 Mac Pro-style glossy black finish and a first-generation Mac mini with an iPod nano dock.

Article Link: Images of Unreleased iPhone 5s in Black and Slate Shared Online

 

[dannyyankou]

I’m glad they went with space grey instead. That color looked so cool

 

[thadoggfather]

For the love of god, Apple make space grey slate again. Even if it has wear+tear consequences

And make space grey laptops the saturated black that the 13" polycarbonate MacBooks were, again.

 

[newyorksole]

I’ve been telling folks for years... A lot of iPhone models or maybe all of them, are manufactured about a year before they are revealed. (Which makes sense)

I remember going to the Genius Bar for my 6S and was shown by the Genius that the manufacture date was from October 2014.

 

[serpico007]

We need the fruity colors back. Gen Z would probably like it too ?

 

[waveman]

Will it be auctioned for a million dollars? It could be advertised as "touched by Steve".

 

[dannyyankou]

I’ve been telling folks for years... A lot of iPhone models or maybe all of them, are manufactured about a year before they are revealed. (Which makes sense)

I remember going to the Genius Bar for my 6S and was shown by the Genius that the manufacture date was from October 2014.

This is not true. A lot of prototypes are manufactured a year before they’re revealed, but iPhones for sale are manufactured around 2 months before they’re released at the earliest. This year that wasn’t the case, because of the pandemic they were shipping them out as soon as they were built.

I preordered my iPhone 12 Pro Max, and looking up the serial number shows it was manufactured in the first week of November.

 

[Serban55]

So the same as the iphone 5....who cares?? after so long...whats the point of this ?!
Every manufacture made a lot of prototypes ...at least if it was something different

 

[JPack]

I’ve been telling folks for years... A lot of iPhone models or maybe all of them, are manufactured about a year before they are revealed. (Which makes sense)

I remember going to the Genius Bar for my 6S and was shown by the Genius that the manufacture date was from October 2014.

That unfortunately doesn't make much sense. For one, TSMC wouldn't even have the chips available for Apple until early to middle of the launch year.

 

[now i see it]

Photoshop

 

[Hastings101]

I kind of miss the designs of some of the older iPhone models, there's something about them that makes them seem more luxury/premium than they really were. Especially the camera area of the old models. which over time has turned into some variation of an ugly and noticeable area on every model after the 5S (I know that's a tech limitation, but it's still noticeable). Having said that, i'm not sure the style would still hold up with bigger phones so Apple probably knows best in this case, they learned from their mistakes too with the iPhone 6/7 that were just ugly slabs of aluminum. iPhone X and onwards look quite nice excluding the camera areas.

Still hate The Notch though. 7 months of my 11 Pro Max and I notice it every day as it gets in the way of pictures, video, and older apps.

 

[mannyvel]

That unfortunately doesn't make much sense. For one, TSMC wouldn't even have the chips available for Apple until early to middle of the launch year.

Manufacturing test samples.

 

[4jasontv]

Back in the early 2000 you could to any mall and there would be multiple kiosks that would swap your phones shell to one of thousands of designs. Can you still do that?

 

[magicschoolbus]

I never liked the aluminum back with the top and bottom glass pieces.

 

[Powermax]

I realy would like to have a true black iPhone for once instead of same shade of gray. In my eyes real black is the most elegant color.

 

[Danindub]

I’ve been telling folks for years... A lot of iPhone models or maybe all of them, are manufactured about a year before they are revealed. (Which makes sense)

I remember going to the Genius Bar for my 6S and was shown by the Genius that the manufacture date was from October 2014.

Yeah, no.

 

[M1Buddy]

This is not true. A lot of prototypes are manufactured a year before they’re revealed, but iPhones for sale are manufactured around 2 months before they’re released at the earliest. This year that wasn’t the case, because of the pandemic they were shipping them out as soon as they were built.

I preordered my iPhone 12 Pro Max, and looking up the serial number shows it was manufactured in the first week of November.

It's because of the pandemic, but mass production is usually it's 6 months or so before launch day, so they have stock in the inventory not like Tesla.

 

[TheSkywalker77]

iPhone X and onwards look quite nice excluding the camera areas.

The camera design for the iPhone X and Xs still is my favourite and looked quite elegant compared to the years prior, imo.

 

[IllinoisCorn]

I’m glad they went with space grey instead. That color looked so cool

View attachment 1714632

5s Space Gray was a gorgeous phone

 

[7thson]

I know that finish was criticized for how it weathered over time, but I remember seeing a coworkers 5 in slate that looked pretty cool in my opinion. This was 2017 and they didn’t use a case and had replaced the screen once. It was scuffed and dinged and gorgeous. Looked like a battle weathered Tie Fighter or a blaster from sci-fi. The coworker was mildly amused at my attention. When I asked if I could take a picture of it he started backing away slowly. Lol he thought I was a kook.

 

[kirk.vino]

No wonder, as the the 5 in black was really poorly made in terms of its coating. I had to return it and got the silver one instead only after 3-4 days. The black one was showing scuff marks even after being carefully used: that coating was coming off easily.

 

[ghanwani]

Don't have an opinion about the color, but I wish they would resurrect this model.

 

[dannyyankou]

It's because of the pandemic, but mass production is usually it's 6 months or so before launch day, so they have stock in the inventory not like Tesla.

Mass production usually begins in early summer, followed by a September release.

 

[TVreporter]

Still my favourite phone I've owned. I'm still on the 8-plus and I have never been a big fan of its camera — for some reason my 5s photos seemed sharper and less washed out than what I take on the 8-plus.

 

[Cosmosent]

This is the one that started a Revolution !

And, the A7 inside of it is, to this day, the Single Best surprise Apple has ever kept till Release !

The A7 was High-Perf, but the 5s wasn't Apple's first-ever "true" High-Perf iPhone.

That distinction goes to the 7+, Apple's first-ever iPhone with 3 GB of DRAM, & a simplified & Bug FREE Perf Controller function !

The next "true" High-Perf iPhones offered by Apple were ALL three of the iPhone 11 models.

The 5s started a revolution, was perfected by Apple with the 7+ (for its day, that is), & became mainstream with ALL members of the iPhone 11 family.

1/3 of the success of the larger-sized iPhone 6 family is strictly because of the A7 in the 5s !

Took Qualcomm over a year to recover from NOT being prepared for the 64-bit transition.