It comes as a pleasant surprise that the iPodObserver's posted what it asserts is an image of the next-generation iPhone model. Not the front of that device, mind you, but of the back. Better than nothing, right?

If the new picture is the real thing, while it doesn't seem to reveal much, it does appear to show an iPhone that uses a different material for its casing—plastic instead today's metal.

That could be an advantage to iPhone users for a couple of reasons.

First, as Brighthand points out, pastic may be a better material to support the upcoming iPhone's added wireless features (3G and GPS) than metal.

Also, if the plastic is finished the right way, it could make the iPhone far less slippery than it is today. (See previous post below for a brief summary of our recent experience having the iPhone slippage.)

The picture also reveals an iPhone that's offers 8GB of storage. Let's that's the minimum amount and Apple is also planning on introducing a 16GB (today's high) and - maybe even - a 32GB 3G/GPS-enabled edition as well.

Back in February, Apple rolled out a new version of the iPhone. Unfortunately, all it offered over the current model was more memory, 16GB instead of 8GB—alas, no 3G.

The new edition of the iPhone with that cellular-wireless data networking capability and - some say - GPS, among other new features, is still a ways off. Rumors place its release as coming as early as June—when Apple releases the iPhone 2.0 software upgrade—and as late as the fall.