Cheese! Third-generation Apple iPod touch prototype with rear camera surfaces on Twitter

The Apple iPod touch is essentially a stripped-down iPhone without a cellular modem, certain features and with reduced specs. The device was created for those who want the multimedia capabilities of the iPhone, both video and audio, without having to subscribe to cellular service. Using Wi-Fi connectivity the iPod touch allows users to download apps from the App Store, browse the internet, stream Apple Music, and more. One thing missing from the first two generations of the device was a camera.

Back in 2009, just before Apple introduced the third-generation iPod touch, images showing a prototype of the device with a camera at the top center of the unit's rear panel leaked. However, when the device launched, the camera was missing from the final design. Today photos of the prototype, camera and all, were shared on Twitter by Giulio Zompetti. The fourth-generation model, unveiled in September 2010, was the first version of the iPod touch to feature a camera. In fact, the model came with two cameras: a .7MP camera on the back, and a .3MP camera in the front.

The most recent version of the iPod touch, the seventh-generation model, was released exactly one year ago today with a 4-inch "Retina display" carrying a resolution of 640 x 1136. The device is powered by the A10 Fusion SoC and comes with as much as 256GB of storage. This model has an 8MP camera in the rear and a 1.2MP FaceTime camera in the front. The seventh-generation iPod touch is available from Apple priced at $199 for 32GB of storage, $299 for 128GB of storage, and $399 for 256GB of storage.