A prototype is the original "proof of concept" for an item. They are often used as stock photos.
Trivia
- As a result of being stock photos, the prototypes of items have been seen on boxes, Yearbooks, and Character Cards instead of the actual items.
- The 1999 prototypes of tender engines use images of 1993 prototypes with plastic coal digitally edited over the tenders.
- The 2002 prototypes of Thomas, Henry, Gordon, James and Percy feature visible ledges, despite them being removed that year.
- Most prototypes from 2009-2012 seen in order catalogs are from the digital modeling stages.
- Most items rereleased by Fisher-Price in 2013 used the 2011 and 2012 versions as prototypes.