UPDATE: In answer to the question posed in this post’s title: No. This is fake.

The above image was sent to TouchArcade.com and, while it’s absolutely possible that it could be phony, the implications of an actual, real iPhone/iPod Touch control pad accessory coming from Belkin could make the portable gaming industry a bit more interesting. Take this info with a grain of salt until it’s confirmed, though.

According to the tipster who sent this in to Touch Arcade, testing will begin on this device in October. It’d also apparently work with App Store games, plugging into Apple’s SDK, so developers would be able to write games to specifically take advantage of the eight-button (six on the front, two on the back) “JoyPod” (as it’s being called). The JoyPod would also feature audio output and a dock connector.

Apparent technical drawings of the JoyPod.

[via Wired]