MacRumors

Near Field Communications World reports (via 9 to 5 Mac) that Apple is rumored to be testing a prototype of its next-generation iPhone equipped with a radio-frequency identification (RFID) chip. The rumor comes from a "highly reliable source" who provided the information to Einar Rosenberg, Chief Technology Officer of Narian Technologies. Rosenberg writes:

Had to share this news. A highly reliable source has informed me that Apple has built some prototypes of the next gen iPhone with an RFID reader built in and they have seen it in action. So its not full NFC but its a start for real service discovery and I'm told that the reaction was very positive that we can expect this in the next gen iPhone.

Apple has filed several patent applications related to RFID, which uses low-power radio waves to allow devices to interact over short ranges. The technology is currently being used in a number of settings, including electronic vehicle toll and mass transit system fare collection and contactless credit card transaction implementations.

AppleInsider details a patent application from Apple published today describing a method offering simplified transfer of data between devices. The method would allow users to easily or automatically transfer certain types of such as files or even content within applications such as online maps or other web pages between devices, addressing the often complex mechanics and decision-making involved in syncing only limited amounts of data between devices.

Though a user may have access to two similarly capable electronic devices, sharing data between the two devices may involve a number of steps, each of which may vary in difficulty. The process of transferring data between the devices may include many user decisions, such as which data to save, where the data is saved, which formats each device may be capable of processing, how to interconnect the devices for a most effective data transfer, etc. Such complexity may increase the difficulty or time spent transferring data between two electronic devices.

In one embodiment of the invention, a "Grab & Go" iPhone application could be used to allow users to transfer such content as files and open browser windows from a desktop Mac or other device.

The patent application also describes user-definable categories that could enable users to automatically grab only certain types of data from another device.

. . .a user may be sitting at their desk at work with an important spreadsheet open on their computer 58 when the user is called into an unexpected meeting. The user may have a number of other personal applications running. The preferences described above may allow the user to "grab" only files related to work from the user's work computer, such as only user data associated with productivity applications. In this way, the user may transfer only the important spreadsheet in the simplified data transfer 114, showing up to the meeting with only those files pertinent to work.

Additionally, the system permits users to define preferred methods of connection between devices, and security settings, as well as options to automatically convert files and content that would be unreadable on target devices to PDF format.

The patent application was filed on September 30th, 2008 and is credited to a total of seven inventors, including former Apple executive and "Father of the iPod" Tony Fadell.

Apple today announced [Google translation] that its first retail store in France will officially open on Saturday at the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris. The two-level store will employ 150 staff members offering the full range of Apple retail store sales and service offerings typical of the company's retail stores.

"We are very pleased to extend the experience of the Apple Store in France, said Ron Johnson, Senior Vice President of Retail Apple. The new store is located below the famous Louvre Pyramid, in the Carrousel du Louvre. This is the place to go shopping, train and develop ideas."

French site MacGeneration attended a media preview [Google translation] of the new store and offers several photos of the interior.

MacGeneration has also posted a follow-up article [Google translation] offering additional photos from the media event.

Apple has plans for rapid expansion in France, with the opening of a second store scheduled for November 14th in Montpellier in the South of France. MacGeneration has also informed us that Ron Johnson indicated at the media event that a second Paris store is planned to open next summer near the Opra Garnier, approximately one mile from the Carrousel du Lourve location.

Fortune today named Apple CEO Steve Jobs "CEO of the Decade", highlighting his role in the remaking of multiple industries and propelling Apple to continued success despite difficult economic conditions. As part of the feature, Fortune profiles Jobs and offers an interactive timeline of major Apple events over the past ten years.

How's this for a gripping corporate story line: Youthful founder gets booted from his company in the 1980s, returns in the 1990s, and in the following decade survives two brushes with death, one securities-law scandal, an also-ran product lineup, and his own often unpleasant demeanor to become the dominant personality in four distinct industries, a billionaire many times over, and CEO of the most valuable company in Silicon Valley.

Also featured in the profile are a set of rare photos of Jobs over the years, a rundown of the "Top 10" moments in Jobs' career, and a series of testimonials from eight significant personalities in Jobs' industries describing what makes him unique.

Superlatives have attached themselves to Jobs since he was a young man. Now that he's 54, merely listing his achievements is sufficient explanation of why he's Fortune's CEO of the Decade (though the superlatives continue). In the past 10 years alone he has radically and lucratively reordered three markets -- music, movies, and mobile telephones -- and his impact on his original industry, computing, has only grown.

Apple today seeded a new version of Mac OS X 10.6.2, termed Build 10C540, to developers. The release comes one week after the release of the previous build.

As with the previous two developer seeds, Apple lists no known issues in the new build. Approximately a half dozen areas of change since the previous seed are documented, including fixes for issues related to AirPort on Apple's latest iMac models and VMware, as well as graphics-related issues affecting certain graphics cards and the Apple TV.

Mac OS X 10.6.2 reportedly addresses a serious bug involving Guest accounts that has resulted in some users losing all data from their regular user accounts. It also appears to bring full native support for Apple's new multi-touch Magic Mouse, allowing future purchasers of the mouse once the update is released to the public to skip the step of installing a separate software update to enable full Magic Mouse functionality.

Developer seeds of Mac OS X 10.6.2 have received significant attention this week after it was revealed that Apple had apparently disabled support for Intel's Atom processors that are power many netbooks modified by users to run OS X in a build released two weeks ago. Last week's released build, however, appears to have restored Atom compatibility, although the reasons behind the changes remain unknown.

Earlier this week, a report surfaced claiming that Apple had apparently disabled support for Intel's Atom processors in the latest developer build of Mac OS X 10.6.2. The revelation set off a firestorm around the Internet, riling many users who have modified their Atom-based netbook models to run OS X and sparking speculation that Apple may have been moving to hamper such "Hackintosh" netbook projects as it prepares to launch its much-rumored tablet computer.

In an update to his original blog post about the discovery, Tumblr user "stellarola" reveals that the latest Mac OS X 10.6.2 developer seed (Build 10C535) is apparently working just fine on his Atom-based netbook hardware.

Anyways, in the latest development build Atom appears to have resurrected itself zombie style in 10C535. The Atom lives another day, but nothing is concrete until the final version of 10.6.2 is out.

The original post describing the lack of Atom support was made on October 27th, one day before Apple seeded Build 10C535 to developers, meaning that the poster was experiencing difficulties on his Atom-based netbook with the then-current Build 10C531. It is unclear at this time whether the lack of Atom support in that build was intentional on Apple's part or if it was simply a bug that the company addressed in the next developer version.

Parallels today announced the launch of Parallels Desktop 5 for Mac, an updated version of the popular virtualization software that allows Mac users to run Windows, Linux, and other operating systems alongside OS X. The update reportedly brings over 70 new features to the software package, along with significant performance enhancements.

According to performance research conducted by Crimson Consulting Group, Parallels Desktop 5 for Mac performs 22% faster than the nearest Windows-on-Mac competitor in standard productivity testing of Windows 7 64-bit on a MacBook Pro. In addition, version 5 is up to 300% faster for virtual machine operations than the previous version. For 3D and graphics performance, tested under the industry standard 3Dmark 2006 Professional test suite the new version performs up to 7 times better.

Among the new features in Parallels Desktop 5 for Mac are full Aero support for Windows Vista and 7, the addition of more "Mac-like" features in Windows such as trackpad gestures and horizontal scrolling, copy and paste of formatted text and layouts across operating systems, and multiple monitor support.

Parallels Desktop 5 for Mac is priced at $79.99, with upgrade pricing of $49.99 available for current Parallels users. Customers who purchased Parallels Desktop 4 for Mac on or after October 1st, 2009 are eligible for a free upgrade to the new version.

Billboard reports that Apple has launched a new section of its iTunes Store called "Music Movies" [iTunes Store], featuring video content with a music focus such as music documentaries, concert films, and movie musicals. Apple is also reportedly seeking to strike deals to bring new movie-themed video content to the iTunes Store before such releases are brought to DVD.

The most visible change to the iTunes service will be a Music Movies landing page dedicated to music films such as concert movies, documentaries and music-focused feature films. Additionally, Apple plans to negotiate exclusive access to new music-themed movies to make them available for home distribution on iTunes before the physical DVD makes its way to retail shelves or rental stores.

Billboard notes that Apple is currently featuring pre-orders for It Might Get Loud [iTunes Store], a forthcoming documentary focusing on guitarists The Edge, Jimmy Page, and Jack White, as well as older content such as John Lennon's Imagine, Prince's Purple Rain, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

The company hopes to increase video sales on iTunes in part by luring music consumers to its library of music-themed movies. While Apple has not released any specific figures, it sells far more music than videos, and hopes to create a strong bridge between its music catalog and its video catalog by focusing on content that appeals to music fans.

The report notes that while DVD sales have experienced a recent slight dip, music-themed DVDs have seen an extraordinary decline in sales, with revenue falling over 50% from 2007 to 2008 and even further since then. Consequently, Apple's push into the promotion of music-themed movies is likely to be well-received by the industry as customers continue to move away from physical media toward downloadable content for their entertainment needs.

Apple today officially announced that more than 100,000 apps are now available from the App Store.

"The App Store, now with over 100,000 applications available, is clearly a major differentiator for millions of iPhone and iPod touch customers around the world," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "The iPhone SDK created the first great platform for mobile applications and our customers are loving all of the amazing apps our developers are creating."

"The App Store has forever changed the mobile gaming industry and continues to improve," said Travis Boatman, vice president of Worldwide Studios, EA Mobile. "With a global reach of over 50 million iPhone and iPod touch users, the App Store has allowed us to develop high quality EA games that have been a huge success with customers."

"With 10,000 downloads a day, worldwide customer response to our I Am T-Pain App has exceeded our wildest expectations," said Jeff Smith, CEO of Smule. "The App Store has given us a unique opportunity to create and grow a very successful business, and we're looking forward to an exciting future."

An announcement was expected ever since App Shopper.com noted that over 100,000 applications had been approved. Apple's previous official announcement of App Store application count occurred in late September, when the store surpassed two billion downloads with 85,000 available apps.

Engadget reports that AT&T has filed suit against Verizon over recent Verizon ads touting its national 3G network by comparing its coverage to AT&T's 3G network using the iPhone-inspired tagline "There's a map for that." The complaint requests an injunction preventing Verizon from depicting non-3G coverage areas in AT&T's network as "blank" spaces on maps in its advertising, as well monetary damages suffered by AT&T due to the advertising campaign.

AT&T's complaint stems from its belief that the ads mislead potential customers into thinking that AT&T provides no coverage outside of its 3G areas, while the vast majority of areas not covered by AT&T's 3G network are in fact covered by the company's 2.5G network that offers essentially the same experience as the 3G network, albeit at slower data speeds.

In response to a direct contact from AT&T, Verizon has altered the ads to remove an "out of touch" label for blank areas of maps depicting AT&T's 3G coverage and inserted a phrase at the end of the ads stating that voice and data services are available outside of the 3G coverage area in small font. The change, however, has not satisfied AT&T.

The move is certainly not unusual for AT&T and Verizon, as the two companies have faced off several times in the past over what each side has claimed as false or misleading advertising. Earlier this year, the two companies clashed over AT&T's claim of possessing "America's Most Reliable 3G Network".

ifoAppleStore's Gary Allen posts a preview at AppleInsider of Apple's new iPod touch-based EasyPay checkout system for its retail stores. The preview comes after last week's news that Apple is beginning the process of rolling out the new devices to replace the existing Windows CE-based EasyPay handheld systems.

The new iPod-touch based system consists of an integrated hard plastic shell housing the iPod touch, a magnetic stripe reader for credit cards and a barcode scanner for scanning product information. The shell also includes a hidden rechargeable battery to power the auxiliary hardware.

Credit card transactions will reportedly be handled entirely on the EasyPay device, with customers using a stylus to enter their signature electronically on the iPod touch.

Debit customers will need to swipe their cards and enter their PIN numbers at separate terminals located throughout the stores, but the remainder of the checkout process can be handled on the EasyPay device. Cash transactions using the EasyPay device will be rolled out at selected stores over the next six months and will allow sales associates to use the EasyPay system to electronically access any of several cash drawers scattered about the store to complete transactions.

iPhone purchasing and activation has also reportedly been integrated into the new system, allowing sales associates to enter customers' calling plan and add-on selections and permit customers to review and sign the terms and conditions required for iPhone purchases. The system can also be used to process many returns, locating purchase records via the barcode on the customer's receipt, product serial number, customer e-mail address, or credit/debit card number and generating a credit to the customer's account.

Gizmodo reports that Chinese parts supplier China Ontrade is offering an "Apple iPhone 4 Generation Midboard", which the company claims it received from Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn on November 1st. The site also claims that it will be posting pictures of the back cover of the next-generation iPhone in the near future.

We also have final pictures of iPhone 4 Generation with amazingly beautiful back cover that will come here up soon. Please check for updates.

The same company last week posted what it claims to be a SIM card tray from the fourth-generation iPhone, although the site also referred to the device as an "iTablet", suggesting that the tray could be from Apple's much-rumored tablet project rather than the iPhone.

We remain skeptical of China Ontrade's claims, as a previous claim of the third-generation iPhone bezel posted a month before the release of the iPhone 3GS actually turned out to apparently be from the Creative Zii Egg. A claimed LCD for the iPhone 3GS posted at the same time, however, does appear to have been correct. Consequently, it remains to be seen whether this latest part is in fact from a next-generation iPhone, which would be a significant surprise this early before an expected launch next summer, or if it is from some other device.

Reuters reports that China Unicom has signed up only 5,000 iPhone users since the device's official launch there late last week. Despite the apparent poor performance of the iPhone, China Unicom Chairman Chang Xiobing remains upbeat about the iPhone, as well as the broader rollout of it 3G network, which has already signed up 1 million customers.

"We are satisified with iPhone sales so far, and we aim to have an additional 1 million new 3G subscribers each month in the near future," he said.

Xiobing also told reporters that the iPhone would help boost China Unicom's revenue for the fourth quarter, although the company will see increased costs due to iPhone subsidies and advertising, leading to decreased profit margins.

Concerns over the lack of Wi-Fi functionality on the initial China-specific iPhone and relatively high prices compared with many other countries had been seen as a challenge for the company, with many users interested in the device likely instead opting for fully-functional unlocked iPhones imported from other countries.