RumorRoundup Articles on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Rumor Roundup: The definition of insanity

by Chris Rawson (May 21st, 2013)

Have you ever heard the saying, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results?" Apparently none of the rumor blogs have, because they keep publishing the same sketchy rumors from the same terrible sources. Many of these sources ...

Rumor Roundup: Delayed until whenever

by Chris Rawson (May 13th, 2013)

Several of this week's rumors strongly suggest that a main fixture in any analyst's office is a dartboard with months listed on it instead of numbers. "Apple will launch its next iPhone in..." *throws dart* "...September. Of course! Quickly, Robin: to the B.S.mobile!" Analyst: Apple to release ...

Rumor Roundup: Sad state

by Chris Rawson (May 6th, 2013)

Let's open this week's roundup with an examination of the state of the Apple rumor scene. The sad state of Apple rumors (Macworld) This past week, Macworld published an article lamenting the current state of Apple rumors. Macworld's take is that the Big Three Devices have already launched -- Apple ...

Rumor Roundup: Not so wounded as we were led to believe

by Chris Rawson (Apr 29th, 2013)

Apple released its quarterly financial results this past week, and it turns out the company is significantly less doomed that many had predicted. It looks like Apple lives to fight for another quarter... unfortunately, that also means three more months of gibberish from "analysts" and other ...

Rumor Roundup: Selective skepticism

by Chris Rawson (Apr 22nd, 2013)

Many websites have learned the hard way that any 15-year-old kid with a copy of Photoshop and too much time on his hands can easily brew up a convincing "leaked" Apple product. Justifiably, then, these same sites sometimes greet photos of leaked parts with a degree of skepticism. Now, if only ...

Rumor Roundup: A new definition of 'insider'

by Chris Rawson (Apr 15th, 2013)

The rumor blogs are developing a curious type of tunnel vision lately. Any time a rumored new hire, new part, new technology, or new patent appears that can't be immediately tied to one of Apple's existing products, the rumor blogs immediately start braying about the iWatch. They did exactly the ...

Rumor Roundup: Psychic Friends Network

by Chris Rawson (Apr 9th, 2013)

Back in the 90s, you couldn't watch TV after 10 o'clock at night without seeing at least one commercial for the Psychic Friends Network and/or Miss Cleo. I always used to wonder what happened to those guys after the bankruptcies and fraud investigations, but I think I've got it figured out: they ...

Rumor Roundup: 'Deafening buzz'

by Chris Rawson (Apr 2nd, 2013)

"April showers bring May flowers." This old phrase refers to rain showers, but it could just as easily apply to the shower of "analysis" and rumors regarding Apple and its products. You could print any one of these stories out and use it to fertilize your lawn. Apple expected to report record ...

Rumor Roundup: Attack of the copycats

by Chris Rawson (Mar 25th, 2013)

Apple's competitors have almost devolved to the point of self-parody. Samsung and Google are perfect examples; they're now both gearing up to push products to market simply because Apple has been rumored to be working on a wearable computer or "iWatch." Some blatantly anti-Apple pundits will of ...

Rumor Roundup: 'Free donuts tomorrow'

by Chris Rawson (Mar 18th, 2013)

A few weeks ago, I compared the world of Apple "analysis" and rumors to the worst possible game of Wheel of Fortune. Upon further reflection, it feels a lot more like the combination of a drunken game of darts and hanging an intentionally misleading "Free donuts tomorrow" sign in front of a ...

Rumor Roundup: 'A mixed record with Apple rumors'

by Chris Rawson (Mar 11th, 2013)

The "iWatch" isn't even remotely confirmed to exist yet, but if you think that's stopped analysts from predicting it'll be either Apple's salvation or the harbinger of its demise (depending on which way the chicken bones fall), then you must be new to the world of Apple rumors. Meanwhile, this ...

Rumor Roundup: Play that funky Misek

by Chris Rawson (Mar 4th, 2013)

A modest proposal: Apple should award a unibody aluminum dunce cap to the analyst whose record of predictions turns out to be the worst in any given year. We're only into March, but one analyst is already standing above the rest. Purported 'iPad 5' cases again hint Apple will adopt mini-like ...

Rumor Roundup: Buy a vowel

by Chris Rawson (Feb 25th, 2013)

Picture three contestants on Wheel of Fortune who are all Wall Street analysts. They play all the dumb letters first -- Z, X, Q, and so forth -- and land on "Bankrupt" on almost every spin. Now picture the puzzle they're trying to solve is, "What will Apple do next?" Welcome to the world of ...

Rumor Roundup: Analyst overload

by Chris Rawson (Feb 18th, 2013)

There's a marked split in rumors related to Apple. There's "almost kind of real news" that's sourced from "people familiar with the matter" or "sources who have been reliable in the past" or perhaps even spyshots of parts, products, or entire production lines. This type of article probably (*) ...

Rumor Roundup: Watch this

by Chris Rawson (Feb 11th, 2013)

A light week for rumors brought out the usual dross with an unexpected late-week bonus: a truly ridiculous story about the long-rumored "iWatch." OS X 10.9 Activity Ramping Up as Speculation on Developer Preview Release Increases (MacRumors) The next version of OS X, version 10.9, keeps ...