There has been plenty of gossip and speculation around a new version of the Moto X, which is tipped for release this year, but a new photo actually throws previous rumours and leaks into doubt.

HellomotoHK has posted pictures of the shell of the phone on its Facebook page that debunks a former suggestion that the third-generation Moto X will come with a fingerprint sensor.

According to the source, the previous leak was of an old engineering version not the actual new device. It has posted instead pictures of the frame of the new model, which differ and show a handset that will not have a biometric sensor for security.

Of course, whether these turn out to be the final release model or not is also up for debate, but their existence at least suggests the Chinese supply chain is readying itself for manufacture and we can therefore expect an announcement in the next couple of months.

READ: Motorola Moto X (2015) release date, rumours and everything you need to know

The previous Moto X was announced last September, so it would be a good bet that the replacement will come around the same time.

Until then, have a goggle at HellomotoHK's nudie pics of the device. Pwooooaaarrr!

READ: Motorola Moto X (2014) review: An uncluttered Android marvel