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Monday 10th July 2006
Analyst puts Apple rumours in perspective 11:06AM, Monday 10th July 2006
Ultra-portable Macs, in-flight iTunes and touch-screen iPods are among the least likely rumoured Apple product releases, according to Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster.

In a report to investors, the analyst ranked recent Apple rumours from the most likely through to the utterly spurious.

'Almost certain' are OS X 10.5 Leopard - which Apple has already said it will preview at its forthcoming Worldwide Developers' Conference (WWDC) in August - and the Mac Pro, the Intel-powered successor to the company's Power Mac range of desktop computers.

Next in order of likelihood comes movie downloads via iTunes - although according to Forbes this too is certain, pending agreement on pricing - then the long-expected iPhone, which Munster says remains uncertain, although he expects some kind of 'iPod with cellphone capability' within 12 months.

'Less certain' are telephone functionality within
 
 
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iChat, a video iPod with a touch-sensitive, four-inch screen or a standalone 'iHome' media hub, not least because Apple's Front Row already provides multimedia capabilities through a single, albeit computer-based interface.

At the bottom of Munster's likelihood scale come April's report by Flight magazine that several manufacturers of aircraft in-flight entertainment systems have had talks with Apple about the possibility of licensing iTunes to sell music during flights, claims that the iTunes Music Store will carry adverts and the possibility that Apple will introduce an ultra-portable Mac using NAND-flash storage rather than an HDD.

Munster has ignored some of the more recent speculation surrounding 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, such as claims that the next upgrade to the iWork productivity suite will add a spreadsheet application currently known as Charts (although previous rumour cycles have suggested that it would be called Numbers), designed not to compete with Microsoft's de facto industry standard Excel application, but rather 'as a more consumer-friendly spreadsheet application that can handle the needs of home users and small businesses', according to Think Secret.

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