Monday, May 19, 2008, 01:00 pm

Case maker's website hammered on claim of 3G iPhone protector

By Katie Marsal

The website of a little-known case maker was pounded with traffic and essentially knocked off line early Monday afternoon after it posted renderings of a so-called "iPhone 3G" protective holder and said the product was available for shipping.

Dubbed the "EXO Mask iPhone 3G," the case by maker XSKN largely resembles any one of the various protective holders already available for the first generation iPhone. However, it's gaining attention on various blogs because the large cutouts in the area of the iPhone's earpiece and speaker would presumably conform to a rumored rearrangement of the handset's sensors and lower grill design.

It should be noted that the renderings most likely represent a ploy by the case maker to generate traffic to its website and are unlikely to provide any credible insight into what may be expected next month when Apple formally unveils its first-ever 3G handset.