Photo: Courtesy Instagram (left); Apple (right).
Two days ago, Kim Kardashian posted an image to her Instagram account with the tagline "Selfie." The odd thing? It would appear at first glance that Kim K is in possession of the new iPhone 5S, announced only yesterday. Internet gossip sites seem pretty convinced that it could be nothing but the new Apple model, especially considering Kanye West's budding relationship with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Still, it should be noted, Wozniak probably does not have access to pre-release iPhones, since he ended his relationship with the company in 1987. As a mega-celebrity she's clearly a shoo-in for covetable swag, but does Apple really need the promotion at this point?
Judge for yourself. Could she be holding a sparklingly new 5S in the new Space Gray colorway, or is it just a black iPhone 5 benefitting from some flattering sunlight reflecting off its back? Kim's photo is too blurry to tell, but another thing: The new 5S double-LED flash is tall and pill-shaped, while this one appears to be round.
Perhaps the most important question, however, is this: Why is the photo quality so terrible when Apple spent a very long time yesterday touting the brand-new, brilliant camera technology of the 5S? Or is it even a selfie? Take a look at the angles: She's sitting in the back of a car, and her photos are taken at precarious angles. Does she have a mirror in the back of her car? (Probably.) Or did a member of her entourage with a early-Aughts-era Nokia take this picture? The mind positively reels.