iPod Touch & Nano leaked photos garner Apple’s ire

Remember that squat little iPod mockup we threw together back when the first next-gen iPod hardware rumours drizzled out?  Well, a couple of days ago 9to5Mac.com got their hands on what it was claimed were authentic photos of the next model in Apple's Nano line, only to have the Cupertino legal beagles snap at their mouse cords and demand they pull the pics.  Sadly enough, the supposed real-deal looks unfortunately like our chubby "artist's impression".

Then a second lot of pictures, supposedly of the next flagship iPod, showed up... only to be similarly spanked off of the internet by Apple's lawyers.  

Now there's no guarantee that, just because Apple got shirty and claimed that the photos were "stolen" from them, they really show the next iPods... but it's certainly enough to get wicked tongues wagging.

In terms of features, expect a dumpy little shrunk-down iPod Nano complete with new colour options; meanwhile, its big brother gets an HTC-baiting new name - the iPod Touch - thanks to the same 480 x 320 screen as the iPhone, embedded OS, coverflow iPod functionality and single-button home navigation.  The whole thing will be a little thicker than the iPhone (probably because of the trad hard-drive rather than skimpy flash memory) and have a black, sharper-edged bezel rather than the cellphone's curved, silver one.

[via SlashGear]