In a report about Microsoft contracting Taiwanese manufacturer Pegatron Technology to produce its Project Natal controllers, the Seattle Times shared this curious image of a prototype for the sensor device. If you can't read it, the left sticker says, "Caution: Potentially hazardous laser energy. Do not open the enclosure."

This version of the hardware looks noticeably different from the marketing shots Microsoft's passed around for Natal; for one thing, it's propped on a Gorillapod camera tripod instead of a first-party plastic stand, and it's covered with stickers.

The wire also plugs into the top of the hardware instead of the back, and the exposed sensor parts are moved to the right side instead of positioned in the center. Siliconera adds that the bar looks a little smaller than the concept picture released at E3 last year.

The Seattle Times article has a funny bit mentioning that Pegatron is also manufacturing the next-generation iPhone. The newspaper fantasizes, "Imagine if they jumbled things up and shipped motion-sensing iPhones or Natal controllers that synced to iTunes." Imagine!