Chris Chang from M.I.C. Gadgets claims that Apple manufacturer Foxconn may have "lost" an iPhone 5 prototype, which was subsequently sold to case manufacturers who then promptly began producing cases that leaked onto the internet, flooding us with rumors of the larger, wider, tear-drop shaped form factor.

With its past experience, one might think Apple would have been able to track that prototype down in a heartbeat. However, Apple was outsmarted. The person who had access to the prototype wiped the phone’s software, thus disabling the GPS hardware needed to track it down. It was then allegedly sold to one of the iPhone case manufacturers for RMB ¥20,000 (about $3,100). We were told that Foxconn was aware of the loss and had penalized internal management for the incident. We also heard from another source that the person who “lost” it was paid to do so. This case is similar to the iPad 2 leak reported back in June, where three men were jailed for stealing unreleased information about the Apple tablet.

Apple has been known to produce more than one iPhone prototype before -- an ambitious model and a more conservative model if the ambitious one doesn't come together in time. Whether or not this story is accurate, whether or not Apple had this type of prototype in the pipe for iPhone 5, and whether or not they're going to bring it to market are all unknowns at this point.

What's not an unknown is that Apple will finally settle this once and for all on October 4.

According to AppleInsider, Near Field Communications reports that Apple has built iPhone prototypes equipped with RFID (Radio-Frequency IDentification).

For those unfamiliar, RFID is either super-convenient, terrifyingly insecure, or both. In a nutshell, it broadcasts a signal that can be read from a short distance to process financial transactions (an easy-pay card), determine identity (some nations' passports), and more futuristic concepts where devices can auto-discover and connect with each other based on their tags.

The convenient part is you could swipe your iPhone to pay for goods or services rather than carrying around cards. Your iPhone could also keep track of tagged item like keys so you can find them between your sofa cushions.

The terrifying part is when hackers and other bad guys read your financial information from a distance, or "see" what country you're from when trying to determine targets in less friendly parts of the world. Or, just use them to track you instead of your keys.

The future is not for the timid, however, so let us know -- do you want?