hardware

Just under a year ago, we heard about iBreath, a breathalyzer accessory that attaches to your iPhone and tells you your approximate blood alcohol content, and even doubles as an FM Radio transmitter. The time for waiting is over, as the iBreath breathalyzer is now available for just $49.95, down from its normal price, $89.95.

Remember the photograph of that black bezel that was rumored to be a component in the next iPhone? When we saw that the 3GS was going to look the same as the previous model, one of the first things we wondered was what all of those new components were from. Now we know: the black bezel was actually the bezel component for an iPhone clone, the Creative Zii Egg. The device will be similar to the iPod touch, as discovered by Cnet Asia.

Samsung introduced a new mobile processor core similar to the one in the iPhone 3GS. Nicknamed 'Hummingbird', the chip runs at 1GHz, compared to the 600Mhz chip in the iPhone. Theoretically, such a chip could potentially be used in future iPhone models with only minor changes.

Several third party iPod cases have been spotted coming out of China hinting that the iPod touch may be getting the addition of a camera in the near future. Cult of Mac has managed to get their ninja-like fingers on twelve photographs of cases that include a camera hole on the back of the device similar to those found on iPhone cases. Unlike the iPhone, the hole is located in the center of the top back next to the antennae, rather than in a corner.

One of the more impressive hardware improvements in the iPhone 3G S compared to the previous generations is the impressively powerful graphics unit, the PowerVR SGX. MICHAELSD has spotted a demo video showing the kinds of thing the new chip is capable of (after the break).

Apple made a big deal about how the iPhone 3G S looks the same as the iPhone 3G on the outside, but it turns out that they did make one little hardware upgrade. Apple's "iPhone How To: Cleaning iPhone" page mentions a new oil-resistant coating on the iPhone 3G S's display.

Engadget reports to have it from a "trusted source" that models of the next generation of iPhone have been approved by the PCS Type Review Certification Board in 4GB, 8GB, 16GB and 32GB capacities for use on some carriers. This adds further credability to the rumors of a new iPhone launch some time around (or possibly after) WWDC.

We first saw photos of what was claimed to be the plastic back casing of the unreleased next generation iPhone back in February, which showed a matte black finish, unlike the current generation's shiny plastic. Now another photograph has surfaced that compares the matte black component the shiny plastic back casing of the current generation iPhone 3G.

A recent job listing appeared on Apple.com that may hint at more powerful ARM processors for the iPhone and iPod touch down the road. The position, titled High Perform/Low Level Programmer, asks for someone with detailed knowledge of the ARM processor and the vector unit NEON (wiki), an extended instruction set used for accelerating multimedia applications.

Ars Technica has found two new job listings at Apple Inc. headquarters in Cupertino suggesting the company may be considering adding a camera to the iPod Touch. Until recently, the job description for "Camera Project Manager - iPhone" included a reference to the iPod.