AppleInsider has some great pictures today that reveal early design concepts for the iPad that were first created from 2002 to 2004, and that have come to light thanks to a court filing. The pictures were first posted on Network World today, and show that the early iPad prototypes were not that far off what Apple eventually released, complete with rounded corners, the dock connector at the bottom, a similar glass touchscreen front panel, and the plain back with the logo. Interestingly though, these early prototypes do not have a home button, and also have a smaller black border around the edge of the screen. They are also considerably thicker than the first iPad that was finally released in 2010 by Apple. AppleInsider notes that this pictorial evidence of the existence of iPad prototypes way back in 2002 confirms what Steve Jobs said at the 2010 All Things D conference about Apple working on a touchscreen tablet even prior to developing the iPhone.
Source: Court filing reveals Apple's iPad prototype from early 2000s
