The rumors are flying around the upcoming Apple press event like bees in a clover field; bees goaded on by Piper Jaffray's Senior Research Analyst, Gene Munster.

On Monday, he suggested that the iPhone will be on multiple carriers in the US by next year. Yesterday, he predicted that Steve Jobs himself could make an appearance at next week's press event. Today, it's the Apple TV he's after. Citing short delivery times on the current 40GB model, he suspects that the 40GB model will be phased out and the 160GB model made less expensive.

Even if this does happen, we expect that Steve (or whomever) won't mention it. It wouldn't be the first time Apple made a change to the Apple TV immediately following a press event without having said a word.

For now, keep buzzing, little bees.

Update: Jim Dalrymple at The Loop has poured cold water on Munster's Apple TV prognostications. Dalrymple reports "very reliable sources" denying any introductions for non-music products at the 9/9 event.

So, Apple has confirmed that there will indeed be an event next Wednesday, September 9th. The image on the invitations indicates iPods, or at least "music", will be the focus of the shindig.

Will we see new iPods with cameras? How about iTunes 9 with some whiz-bang new social networking features? And what about that bright yellow underwater elephant in the room?

While the date is almost too tasty to pass up, I can't imagine (pun intended) that The Beatles will even be mentioned during the event. Why? The slogan the iPod silhouette girl is rockin' to is "It's only rock and roll, but I like it." Now, I'm a little younger than the relevant time period, but I've heard that neither The Rolling Stones nor The Fab Four would be thrilled with the mix up.

So, what do you think? What kind of magic are we likely to see next week?

At last Apple has begun distributing invitations to a press event scheduled for September 9th. The image on the invitation, which features a classic silhouette dancer, pretty much confirms our suspicion that this particular dog-and-pony show feature the iPod (now with cameras! ...maybe). Apple typically introduces new iPods in September.

This year's event will take place at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco on September 9th at 10:00 a.m Pacific time. Perhaps then we'll see that secret television ad. In any case, we think it's safe for the pro-tablet theorists sit this one out. Maybe next time, folks.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

In case you haven't checked iCal lately, the iPhone OS event is only hours away! What that means (aside from all of the tubes being clogged with rumors on what the new OS version will feature) is that it's time for another TUAW wishlist! Please know that while these are all going to be the best guesses on the whole wide web, they are still in fact just that, guesses.

Many of the staff are visiting SXSW and having the grandest of times; the rest of us are working from our satellite office (on the moon, actually). However, we thought it would be a great disservice to not begin the discussion on what you will definitely probably hopefully see in Apple's latest release of the iPhone OS.

Now, sit back and let the reality distortion field wash over you as we wax philosophically about today's press event. Don't forget to come back at 1pm ET/10am PT for our live chat during the preview session.

Earlier today, Apple issued a press event announcement that promises to offer a "sneak peek" at iPhone OS 3.0. It'll go down at 10am Pacific on March 17th in Apple's Town Hall building in Cupertino.

As usual, the whole thing is rather cryptic. From the "blueprint" graphic and text, it sounds like the event will be limited to an overview (but not a release) of iPhone OS 3.0. Perhaps we'll learn a bit about any changes to the SDK as well.

What would you like to see? Copy and paste, for sure. Push notifications for 3rd party apps next. Anything else?

Finally, we don't know who will be doing the talking. Typically, we just assumed it would be Steve.

Update 7:30p: More of our friends around the Mac web are starting to dig out the details on the expected hardware updates tomorrow, and they could be substantial. MacRumors, Hardmac, Engadget Onemorething.nl are all pointing to the following details:

2 new Mac mini models, with USB and display configuration matching the spy shots (color us surprised!)

4 iMac models, with an entry-level 20" and 3 high-powered 24" SKUs

MacPro refresh including 16-core models (!)

DisplayPort standard across the line, and minor updates to the Airport Extreme and Time Capsule

We'll be waiting eagerly by the Apple Store door...

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It's time to take part in a late winter tradition. I don't mean digging out from beneath another Nor'Easter. We're talking Apple rumor time, and we've got two.

The word on the street is that Apple will hold a press event on March 24th to announce some new hardware. What that may be -- and who will deliver the news (our money is on Phil) -- is unknown.

The Mac mini has been tagged as needing an update, and we recently saw a video that claimed to show a new model. Likewise, iMac rumors have been swirling about for a while now.

We haven't seen official word yet, but we'll let you know if and when we do. Mark your iCals for the 24th with the status set to "tentative."

Also from the mill is the above image of what is supposedly the new Mac mini retail packaging, as posted by the Dutch site One More Thing. From what we can tell, the mini on the box bears the same army of ports that we saw in the video: FireWire 800, mini DisplayPort + micro DVI, and five USB ports.

In a recent talkcast, I called a big old "Bogus" on that model, citing all those USB ports as the issue. If I'm as wrong as wrong can be, you'll be the first to know.

Even though the current Mini features its port lineup on the back of the box, something doesn't look quite right about this layout. Is that processor icon in the center an NVIDIA GPU, or an Intel chip? Maybe the box is legit, maybe it's a fake based on the info from the video.

What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.

Some people are never happy. Others are clairvoyant. Now, they've all come together to complain about a press event that hasn't even taken place.

Barron's is reporting a fall in AAPL yesterday on rumors that the Sept. 9 press event will be underwhelming. While new iPods, iTunes and iPod touch pricing are expected, new Macs are not. Hence the downturn.

This is another example of disappointment over an artificial scenario, which we've seen many times before. Each year at WWDC, Apple observers complain when Steve fails to produce a slew of consumer products. Well, that's a developers' conference, not a trade show.

This is the same thing. The invitation to Tuesday's event suggests "iPod." To expect Macs is silly.

We heard a rumor not long ago, and today Engadget confirms the date: Apple will hold a special press event on Sept. 5th. The invitation they received (where's ours, Apple?!?) looks like coverflow as displayed by an iPhone. Hmmm...

The invite is as cryptic as always, so I guess it's up to us to provide wild and baseless conjecture. Let's get started.

See you then, folks.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

As usual, Apple have posted the video of today's press event for all to see. Marvel at the new iMac, iLife '08, iWork...and count the number of times Steve says, "Boom!"

I know I've been eager to see those apps in action, but the demo videos have been getting slammed all day. Perhaps this will be better.

You can watch it all here.

Rumors abound that Apple will be unleashing a brand new iMac on August 7th, which seems a little odd given that is very close to the beginning of the school year. However, given the existence of these photos of a purported new iMac keyboard and the fact that our sister blog Engadget was just invited to a press event on August 7th might prove me wrong.

The invite made it clear that this gathering is all about the Mac, so what do you think we'll see?

We asked, you answered. If cost were not an option, which of the rumored Apple products would you be most likely to buy? You can see the results of our informal poll above: the video-streaming Airport Express was a clear winner. The remaining other votes were evenly divided between the other options.

For all of you who selected "23" iMac," we hope you aren't too disappointed with the 24" model released today. Close, but no cigar.

Ok, folks, it's wild speculation time. The rumors are flying around Apple's upcoming press event. Let's take a detour into fantasy land for just a moment and pretend that all of the supposed goodies come to pass: The new 23 inch iMac, the video-streaming Airport Express and the nanos with iPod mini-like enclosures. Cost aside, which tickles your fancy the most? Would you snap up one of those nanos and say, "Scratches be damned!" I, for one, would pounce on that Airport Express. What's your choice? Vote in our poll and check back tomorrow for the results.

Which are you most likely to buy?
	23" iMac
	New nano
	Video Airport
	Enough with the rumors!
Free polls from Pollhost.com

You have spoken: The event was....meh. Of the 3,200 of you who voted in our highly unscientific poll, the majority of you (41%) felt that the new product announcements were "mediocre." A full 25% of you labeled the event a "huge disappointment," 19% said the stuff is "pretty cool," and only 2% of you felt that the event was a home run.

To the 13% who said, "Enough with the announcement already," we hear you. This one wraps it up. Probably.

Ok, so we've heard from the TUAW bloggers (both yay and nay), now it's your turn: What did you think of Steve's dog and pony show yesterday? Check back tomorrow for the poll results.

Rate Apple's new product announcement
	Home run
	Pretty cool
	Mediocre
	Huge disappointment
	Enough with the announcement already

Alternate title: If Agent Mulder were a Mac geek.

Sometimes it's necessary to break the wild speculation and rumor mongering with a bit of humor, and jyunderwood's poster does the trick. This is also a good opportunity to address what's inevitably going to happen tomorrow. Legions of Mac users are going to cry foul when the device of their dreams isn't announced. That's the problem with these rumors: They look so good, and we get so excited about "...how cool that would be" that we are disappointed when it doesn't happen. Well, it was a rumor in the first place, but we can lose sight of that in our fervor.

So, tomorrow, clear your minds, drink some herbal tea and forget about all that crazy stuff that's been swirling around your head for the past seven days. We're still getting some cool stuff.