Apple wants its 3G MacBook prototype back
Apple wants a North Carolina man to return a prototype notebook computer he purchased on Craigslist earlier this year, CNET has learned.
Three weeks ago, photos of the device emerged in an eBay listing by Carl Frega, a North Carolina resident who had purchased the machine from someone on Craigslist for parts to fuel his repair business. Upon opening it up, he discovered that the machine was unlike any Apple had ever released to the public.
Beneath the notebook’s metal frame was a slot for a SIM card and on the lid was an external antenna, suggesting Apple was testing built-in cellular networking in its notebook computers right around the time the first iPhones were hitting store shelves.
The device, which is still in Frega’s hands, was of big interest to CNET readers after cropping up on eBay for a little less than a day before being pulled down at the request of Apple, though not before bidding hit $70,000 from interested buyers. Apple pulled the plug on the sale (which had actually been listed by a friend of Frega’s), citing infringement on copyrights, trademarks, or other intellectual property rights.
The unusual Apple notebook. (Credit: eBay seller abhw752579)
The cellular antenna almost looks like a stylus…
One has to wonder how this got out in the first place and what happened to the person(s) responsible…