Here are your Apple rumors and news items for Friday:
iPhone Gets Major Storage Upgrade With New Models: Previous iPhones have had fairly limited storage for apps, documents and media like music, at least compared to other Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) devices like the iPod Classic. iPhone users have had either 16GB or 32GB of flash memory space to store whatever they like on their iPhone. According to a Thursday report from 9 to 5 Mac, citing source “Mr. X,” the new iPhone set to debut next Tuesday will come in a third 64GB package as well. Apple’s internal inventory system allegedly lists three separate models of iPhone generation “N94.” (iPhones are labeled with a multi-digit alphanumeric code in Apple’s inventory. The iPhone 4 is listed as “N90A.”) A second report at Mac Rumors suggests that the new 64GB model might be the rumored iPhone 4S upgrade and not the new iPhone 5. A prototype iPhone 4 with 64GB of flash memory appeared in Chinese reports last March.
Half of All iPhone Games Make Just $3,000: For people looking to invest in the next app developer that pulls in revenue like Rovio, remember this: Few iPhone games are Angry Birds. Where even free advertising-supported versions of that game pull in $1 million per month, most iPhone games make barely any money at all, according to a new survey compiled by app developer Owen Goss (via TUAW.) After surveying 252 game developers working on Apple’s portable devices, Goss found that 50% of those developers’ games earned $3,000 or less through sales and in-app purchases. While there are more than 425,000 apps available in the store, Goss’ data still paints a disheartening portrait for businesses looking to capitalize on the popularity of Apple’s machines. Apple shareholders, meanwhile, can take comfort in knowing their company still is taking 30% of every transaction on the App Store, even it is just a 30% cut of $3,000.
AT&T Already Offering iPhone 5 Cases: You can tell when a new tech toy is about to release by the number of accessories for it that hit the market. How do we know the iPhone 5 will release soon? Not because Apple is holding a press conference about it next week. According to Apple Insider, AT&T (NYSE:T) is listing cases for the iPhone 5 in its inventory. This news comes from a source claiming to work at an AT&T retail store. The inventory listing, if true, confirms the new phone will indeed be named the iPhone 5 if nothing else.
As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not own a position in any of the stocks named here. Follow him on Twitter at @ajohnagnello and become a fan of InvestorPlace on Facebook.
