May 22 - 12:35pm EDT   The grand opening of Apple's latest store in Switzerland has drawn large crowds, as shown in images posted by the Italian Mac-enthusiast site Macitynet. The building, located at 77 Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, offers over 4,300 square feet of space and employs 70 staff members. The layout is split between two levels, with unique utilization of the below-ground area for a Genius Bar. Following the typical Apple Store design, the architects integrated a large proportion of glass and stainless steel. [full story]

May 18 - 10:10pm EDT   Switzerland's third Apple store is said to be opening May 22nd. The store is located downtown in the countries largest city, Zurich, at 77 Bahnhofstrasse and will see its doors open at 12 noon. The opening of this store has been long expected, with rumors of a new store first being confirmed by the Bilanz newspaper after quoting Roger Brustio, head of Apple Switzerland. [full story]

March 24 - 2:20pm EDT   Apple has expanded the shipping options for its online store, now allowing customers to ship gifts to friends or family in different countries. The new service applies to the full catalog of iPod and Mac products, along with customized options such as iPod engraving and gift messaging. Customers must place orders from the Apple Online Store of the destination country. [full story]

March 6 - 3:30am EST   The Georgetown Apple Store may have taken another step forward, following repeated conflicts regarding integration of the aesthetic design into the historic district. The Georgetown Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) recently ratified an amendment after four previous designs were rejected, according to ifoAppleStore. The architects added metal dividers to the front window, while removing stainless steel and adding masonry to the facade. [full story]

February 17 - 12:55pm EST   Apple has come to a resolution with lawyers and plaintiffs in a lawsuit regarding disabled access at its San Francisco retail location, according to ifoAppleStore. Jana Overbo and Nicole Brown-Booker initiated the suit in 2007 after experiencing problems navigating the store in wheelchairs. Issues included the width of the aisles, merchandise located too high, pressure required to open the front door, theater seating and Genius Bar staff that did not offer assistance. [full story]

February 17 - 11:45am EST   Apple has confirmed the February 21st grand opening of its Greensboro, North Carolina retail store located between Williams-Sonoma and Anthropologie on Avoindale in the Friendly Center shopping complex. The doors will open to the public at 10:00 a.m. EST, while a special preview will be held for media earlier in the morning. The location will be the first in Greensboro and the largest in North Carolina. [full story]

February 12 - 9:40pm EST   Microsoft on Thursday announced the appointment of David Porter as vice president of Retail Stores, confirming earlier reports that the company is planning a foray into the realm of brick-and-mortar establishments. Porter's first task will be to determine the timing, locations and specific details of the stores. He brings experience from 25 years at Walmart where he served as the vice president and general merchandise manager of Entertainment. [full story]

December 26 - 4:35pm EST   Apple's online store is currently offering a wide variety of refurbished products from iPods to Mac Pros. One and two gigabyte iPod shuffles are priced at $39 and $59 respectively and come in silver, blue, purple and green. The 160GB iPod classic is available in black or silver for $249. MacBooks start at $849 for the 2.1GHz model with 1GB of memory and 120GB hard drive. The 2.0GHz Mac mini with 1GB of RAM and 120GB hard drive is also available for $679. Mac models top off at $4099 for the 3.2GHz Mac Pro with 2GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive. Mac accessories include the wireless keyboard for $69, the MacBook Air external SuperDrive is $79, and two Time Capsule ... [full story]

December 16 - 8:00pm EST   Apple's online store is offering a variety of refurbished iPods at reduced prices. Three iPod touch models are featured; the 8GB model for $179, the 16GB model for $219 and the 32GB model for $319. Two iPod shuffle models are also available; the 1GB model is $39 and the 2GB model is priced at $59, both models come in purple, silver green and blue. 8GB iPod nanos are priced at $99 and come in green, blue, silver, and black. Lastly is the 160GB iPod classic priced at $249 and is available in black or silver. Other refurbished items include the 40GB Apple TV for $199, the wireless keyboard for $69, AirPort Express base station for $79 and the MacBook Air external ... [full story]

November 11 - 9:40pm EST   Apple has will be opening its latest retail location in California on Friday, with the grand opening of its Modesto store in the Vintage Faire Mall. The company had been working on construction and staffing during the summer, and has scheduled the formal opening just in time for the influx of holiday shoppers. Local shoppers will no longer have to travel to the Fresno, Sacramento, San Jose, or San Francisco locations. [full story]

October 6 - 9:40pm EDT   PalaeoGraphics, an Australian authorized Apple reseller, has recently opened a new store in Melbourne. Apple also has opened a Melbourne location earlier in September in the Chadstone Shopping Center. Both the manufacturer and resellers have been expanding locations in Australia this year. Analyst firm Gartner reported earlier this year that the Mac platform has achieved a 52 percent gain in market share in the country since 2007. [full story]

September 17 - 10:15am EDT   Iomega on Wednesday announced it will soon release the external eGo Helium portable hard drive that is designed to match the styling of Apple’s MacBook Air. Iomega is showing off the 320GB capacity drive at the Apple Expo tradeshow in Paris this week. The tapered aluminum shell of the drive houses a 2.5-inch HDD which comes formatted with the HFS+ file system used by Mac OS X. At its thickest, the drive is just 0.63 inches high. [full story]

August 13 - 6:15pm EDT   The Orlando area gets its third Apple Store as a suburban location opens Saturday morning. The Altamonte Springs Apple Store includes a Genius Bar, Business Services, Workshops, Personal Shoppers, One-to-One training and Youth Programs. Apple is giving free T-shirts to the first 1000 visitors. According to The Orlando Sentinel the store occupies 5,500 square feet at the Altamonte Mall. [full story]

August 5 - 9:30am EDT   Apple is set to open another retail store in California, this time in Monterey. The new store is located in the Del Monte Shopping Center which recently received a $20 million renovation. The grand opening is set for August 9th which coincides with the opening of the new Chatswood Chase store in Australia, the second in the country. This will be the first official Apple Store in the Monterey area and the 39th in all of California. [full story]

July 26 - 9:50pm EDT   Friday, July 25th marked the grand opening of the newest Apple Store in Canada. The newest Canadian store opened in Montreal, Quebec and is Canada's first flagship Apple Store, and its seventh official Apple Store. The store is located in the heart of Montreal at 1321 St. Catherine Street West. This new flagship store features the usual services offered at other stores, including a Genius Bar and One to One shopping. The store features Apple's signature glass staircase, as seen in other flagship stores. Over the next couple of days Apple has lined up a series of live performances at the store, including The Stills (July 26th), Alex Cuba (July 27th), Anik Jean (July ... [full story]