Photos of Apple's next version of the popular iPhone appeared online earlier this week and if the images are real, the new device will be getting a longer battery life and a camera in the front. The photos appeared online first at Engadget blog on Saturday.

On Monday, Gizmodo also posted photos of the new device as well as information, claiming that the Gawker Media, the company which owns Gizmodo, paid $5,000 for the phone.

Both websites said the iPhone had been lost in a bar.

Gizmodo claims that the fourth-generation device will have a "much higher resolution" than the the current 3GS's 480x320 display. Other features on the prototype include a front-facing camera, two volume buttons instead of one, a micro-SIM slot, and a bigger lens at the back.

Physically,the black display bezel reaches all the way out to the edges, with a solid, flat aluminum border. Like the existing iPhones, the device in the photos has a black face with a single button. But the device is slimmer and its sides are squared.

Apple has already released the upcoming version of its iPhone OS 4 to software developers, and said the new software would make its way to iPhones and the iPod Touch this summer. The company is also expected to update the iPhone hardware at the same time, although Apple has not confirmed this so far.

Apple did not return messages seeking comment.