Next-Generation iPhone Prototypes Reportedly Support NFC for Mobile Payments

9to5Mac has reanalyzed the previously-obtained code for the next-generation iPhone prototypes and found references indicating that the new smartphone would support NFC technology for mobile payments.

We’ve previously been able to pull data from PreEVT iPhone 5,1 and iPhone 5,2 prototypes codenamed N41AP (5,1) and N42AP (5,2), which leads us to believe that the new iPhone will have a bigger 1136×640 display. We also detailed a lot of the hardware here but forgot one very important little bit. Further investigation into this hardware code dump leads us to believe that these iPhones also have Near Field Communication (NFC) controllers directly connected to the power management unit (PMU).

Despite the fact that Apple didn’t mention NFC in iOS 6 at its Worldwide Developers Conference earlier this month, the company introduced its new Passbook digital wallet app - a time- and location-aware app for storing digital tickets, coupons, loyalty cards, and more. The app is obviously the sign demonstrating that Apple is moving toward offering NFC services.

Your boarding passes, movie tickets, retail coupons, loyalty cards, and more are now all in one place. With Passbook, you can scan your iPhone or iPod touch to check in for a flight, get into a movie, and redeem a coupon. You can also see when your coupons expire, where your concert seats are, and the balance left on that all-important coffee bar card. Wake your iPhone or iPod touch, and passes appear on your Lock screen at the appropriate time and place — like when you reach the airport or walk into the store to redeem your gift card or coupon. And if your gate changes after you’ve checked in for your flight, Passbook will even alert you to make sure you’re not relaxing in the wrong terminal.