'Leaked' 3rd Gen iPod Touch Cases (with Camera Holes) For Sale in U.S.

At this point, it seems obvious that Apple had been working on adding a camera to the newest iPod Touch, but for some reason, the feature was cut at the last minute. Exactly how last minute seems evidenced by the fact that some case manufacturers seem to have mass produced cases adopting the new design, and have pushed these designs into retail stores.

The following clip/armband was spotted at a Best Buy in Texas, which shows an image of an iPod touch with camera:

Meanwhile, an actual case was spotted in a mall in Texas:

We've been told that Apple does not generally share pre-release design information with most case manufacturers. Instead, these case manufacturers simply have enormous financial incentive to obtain the information through other means to be able to manufacture cases ahead of launch. In this case, their gamble didn't quite pay off, though presumably the cases still work with the camera-less iPod touch..