That’s not an iPhone 5 you’re looking at.

As usual, the echoes of the upcoming iPhone 5 polluting the Internet. There’s a grainy picture of a supposed Apple employee using a prototype iPhone 5, let’s start the copying and pasting! Take all iPhone 5 news with a grain or a boulder of salt; including the one you are reading right now. Yes this very post!

“So I know <name redacted> who works for Apple. This person is one of the executives or managers who are closely involved in the iPhone division at Apple. <name redacted> told me stories about the visits from Foxconn factory in China about the manufacturing process of iPhone 4. Back in December 2010, I asked <name redacted> about the upcoming iPhone 5. I was told not to hold my breath for iPhone 5 this June/July 2011. Fast forward to April 30th, 2011; I was looking into getting a white iPhone 4. <name redacted> told me that I’d be getting an iPhone from Apple, but not the white one. Even though I wanted a white iPhone 4, I was glad to get any iPhone on Apple’s dime. Apple also gave me a micro-SIM card with it. Once again I asked <name redacted> about iPhone 5. <name redacted> told me that <content redacted>. I am now looking forward to the iPhone coming in 2012.”

Who is this Apple executive or manager? It could be Steve Jobs, Phil Schiller, Scott Forstall or anyone in the iPhone team.

About that purported picture of iPhone 5:

“I don’t think that’s an iPhone 5. It doesn’t look like the one I’m testing right now.”

What? Can I see it?

“No. You just have to take my words for it.”

Can I tell everyone that you have one?

“You can’t reveal my identity. Apple won’t be too happy about it.”

OK. I won’t say who you are, but I will say that you have the next iPhone.

This is coming from the same person who told us about no iPhone in WWDC. That was from March 2011.

Downtown Long Beach, Long Beach, CA, USA