Apple filed an application shortly after MacWorld to the US Patent and Trademark Office depciting what appears to be a smaller "nano" inspired iPhone.

The application is titled Hand Held Electronic Device with Multiple Touch Sensing Devices and the abstract reads as follows:

An electronic device uses separate surfaces for input and output. One of the surfaces (e.g., the bottom) includes a force-sensitive touch-surface through which a user provides input (e.g., cursor manipulation and control element selection). On a second surface (e.g., the top), a display element is used to present information appropriate to the device's function (e.g., video information), one or more control elements and a cursor. The cursor is controlled through manipulation of the back-side touch-surface. The cursor identifies where on the back-side touch-surface the user's finger has made contact. When the cursor is positioned over the desired control element, the user selects or activates the function associated with the control element by applying pressure to the force-sensitive touch-surface with their finger. Accordingly, the electronic device may be operated with a single hand, wherein cursor movement and control element selection may be accomplished without lifting one's finger.

Click image to view larger.

The background section reads, "An increasingly popular form of electronic device is the hand-held multi-media device. Illustrative devices of this type include palm or hand-held personal computers, tablet computer systems, mobile telephones, personal digital assistants, portable video players and portable audio players."

In the summary, the application discusses "a method to operate the device" and "display numeric or alphanumeric keys".

Thanks Tech UK !