If the current stories floating around the Internet are accurate, Apple briefly owned the islate.com domain, but it’s now registered with a different company, although one that reportedly has dealt with Apple in the past.
Regardless of the truth of that domain’s current ownership, the promise of some sort of tablet computer from Apple may have been one of the reasons why the company’s stock price soared to record levels at the end of the past week. Whereas Apple’s previous contenders in new product categories have been greeted with scorn and supreme skepticism, this time the stakes are high that Apple will have yet another winner.
But that takes us back to the core question, which is what purpose such a product might actually serve. The answer depends on a number of factors that only Apple can answer, and you can bet they won’t say very much until the time is right from a marketing standpoint.
Supposedly the truth will be upon us in late January, if the rumors that Apple has rented an exhibition hall for a special media event are accurate. Even if the report is correct, that facility may serve other corporate purposes, including introductions or products that we haven’t speculated about, or maybe it’s just a red herring to draw our attention away from the real event, whatever it might be.