Next week, Apple is expected to take the wraps of the next iPhone, and let us know if all those rumors over the last few months came close to the truth. Or maybe the tech pundits and Apple rumor sites got everything wrong, but I doubt it.

As has been published elsewhere, Apple PR is very crafty about creating demand for new Apple gear. A handful of “favored” journalists get special access to new products with an embargo to keep from getting the word out too early. There are background briefings that may form the basis of stories quoting informed sources or sources with access to information confirming the arrival of an Apple product, the possible specs, and even when a media event might occur. Since it’s done on background, there can be no direct quotes, nor will the source ever be named.

But it’s usually clear who is letting out the information.

So when a re/code scribe recently reported that Apple planned a press event on September 9th, presumably to launch the next iPhone, you had to take it seriously. It was clear that this report, from a reporter known to be credible, came direct from Apple on background, and confirmation came last week.

For the past few months, chatter about the presumed iPhone 6 have focused on two display sizes: 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches. There has even been speculation about display resolutions, and Daring Fireball’s John Gruber, one of Apple’s favored bloggers, went to the trouble to calculate what resolutions Apple would use to deliver the required Retina display picture quality, yet make it easy for developers to build apps that would “just” work.

I could suggest Apple had something to do with those calculations, or perhaps Gruber, a smart guy, was able to come to a credible solution with a spreadsheet and simple logic. Besides, we’ll know soon enough if he was close to the mark.

But imagine, just imagine, if Apple PR and those alleged supply chain leaks produced nothing of importance about the next iPhone. The speculation might not have exactly died down, but the details would be scarce. Lacking a coherent story, I suspect Apple customers and the media in general would not focus so closely on what Apple planned, at least until the media event was announced.

Thus, Apple would lose all that free publicity. Anticipation would be reduced. Consider the fact that Apple’s media event is happening over a week after the Labor Day holiday in the U.S., which generally signals the end of the summer season. The timing is correct, buttressed by the fact that we saw months of stories, alleged product leaks, to whet (or drown) the public’s appetite for what is to come.

Of course, the system doesn’t work so well if there are no surprises. Certainly most of the details about iOS and OS X Yosemite weren’t available until the WWDC event back in June. Yes, there was scattered information online, certainly the revelation that the look and feel of Yosemite would change dramatically. They even got the name right, though I suspect that, too, wasn’t exactly a lucky guess. But most of the details of what would be new and different weren’t mentioned at all. Apple’s efforts to clamp down on much of the information about the new operating systems and developer tools succeeded admirably.

As of the time I write this column, it seems as if there’s little left to reveal about the iPhone 6. There may even be NFC networking at long last, though that feature has been predicted for several years without success. I suppose there’s the feeling that if something is mentioned often enough, it’ll really happen.

But what about an Apple branded smart TV set? Didn’t Steve Jobs crack the secret sauce to build the best TV interface ever? Where is it? Did it ever exist, or did Jobs, with marketing considerations in mind, simply drop that bomb to spook the competition? It wouldn’t be the first time.

We haven’t heard much about the next Apple TV set-top box either, although new channels continue to be added here and there. There may even be one I’m interested in watching, something that doesn’t already duplicate what I can get on cable or satellite TV. But all those extra channels also increase the clutter of the interface, which is hardly the “magic” solution we’ve been expecting.

There’s also a dearth of information about the alleged Apple wearable, which is expected to be launched next week, with an uncertain delivery date. Will it be an iWatch? Will it even be called an iWatch, or are we all barking under the wrong tree? While the other tech companies are building smartwatches, some no doubt with Apple in mind, what if the product isn’t a watch after all?

No doubt Apple PR is working overtime this week to maximize interest and fine-tune the message even more. All the better to overshadow expected announcements of competing gear from Samsung and other companies.

Every so often, Apple announces an extended warranty repair program for a product that suffers from one or more serious defects. Over the years, Macs have been subject to special programs because of logic boards or power supplies that are prone to failure. More recently, Apple has begun replacing batteries on the iPhone 5 that are subject to premature wear.

Unfortunately, it almost seems as if the news about these special repair programs is on a need to know basis, unless you happen to stumble upon a support message at Apple’s site. So I recall an episode where a friend, a graphic designer, replaced a component in his iMac’s power supply. He was charged several hundred dollars for the privilege by an authorized repair shop.

Now you may know where I’m going with this. When the problem occurred a second time, my friend took his iMac to an Apple Store, only to discover that the repair was actually covered under an extended warranty. What about the previous repair? Well, Apple arranged for him to get his money back. That’s a good thing. The offending dealer, by the way, is now out of business, but shady behavior may be only one of the reasons.

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So it does seem that Apple will launch the iWatch during that September 9th media event at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts in Cupertino, CA. Ahead of the event, Apple is reportedly assembling a two-story structure there, in secret, to accommodate a larger audience. The auditorium will supposedly accommodate three times as many people as previous events.

It’s notable that this is the very location where the late Steve Jobs unveiled the original Macintosh in 1984. So there may be some significance, and not just audience capacity, for holding a launch event there.

Besides, it’s not as if Apple hasn’t raised the hype about what is to come. Senior VP Eddy Cue has been speaking of the greatest Apple product intros ever this fall, and Tim Cook has continued to promise great things that include new products in new categories. It’s important to note that the promise is made as a plural not a singular, so the iWatch may be just the beginning.

Maybe some other surprises will be in store for us, but that might be pressing the buttons a little too hard.

The larger question about an iWatch is whether or not people will decide they actually need one. That’s how Apple won the digital music player market. Before the iPod arrived, the existing gear didn’t sell so well. Having tested some, I regarded them as abysmally slow and difficult to use. Of course, they almost always required USB 1.0, which had relatively slow throughput. Apple’s advantage — until USB 2.0 took over and the Windows platform embraced the iPod — was to use FireWire.

So the iPod became the perfect portable digital device for tens of millions of people, and it help build an audience for the iPhone and, later, the iPad.

Both the iPhone and the iPad were built in answer to the shortcomings of existing gear. Instead of making it an executive plaything, the iPhone was the indispensable device for people of all ages, technically inclined or otherwise. Despite the fact that tablets had gone nowhere except for a few vertical markets, the iPad was, again, accessible to anyone and met the needs for many people as an accessory device or an actual replacement for a Mac or PC.

That takes us to the smartwatch dilemma. Just how many people really need a watch anymore? My son, aged 28, relies on his iPhone when he needs to know the time. Sure, it’s more awkward than looking at one’s watch, but people have priorities. Some, such as Mrs. Steinberg, wear a watch as an item of jewelry, not something with which to tell the time. In Barbara’s case, it’s mostly because her watch isn’t terribly accurate, but it looks just great on her tiny wrist.

So Apple has to consider the people who may not be potential customers for a watch and how to change their minds. The other issue is the functionality of existing smartwatches, and one recent device, the Samsung Gear S, has a built in mobile phone with 3G support. Calling Dick Tracy!

Indeed, the Gear S doesn’t look bad at all at first glance. It presents the face of a decent traditional watch with a curved rectangular face. The two-inch SuperAMOLED screen, with a 360 x 480 resolution, seems rather large for a watch, and thus would fit into the traditional men’s category. Would there be a smaller women’s version? That appears to be something lacking in most current models, and I don’t make the comment with sexist intentions. We’re talking about something that would be regarded as not just a fancy gadget, but a piece of jewelry that appeals to a larger audience not normally attracted to tech gear.

Now it’s true that the Samsung joins a small number of smartwatches that, shorn of the electronic goodies, appears to actually resemble a watch. Similar to other Samsung products of this sort, it uses the Tizen OS, which is a Linux-based OS that appears similar to Android, but doesn’t support Google Android Wear. If this thing catches on, maybe Samsung will take a huge step away from Android in their smartphone lines. Certainly they wouldn’t have to pay patent royalties to Microsoft for every unit sold, and that is a matter of litigation between the two companies.

Of course, it’s not so difficult to envision a watch-like interface for a potential iWatch, and a number of design concepts from graphic artists have already appeared, along with several variations on the potential specs. It wouldn’t stretch one’s imagination to assume that there will be support for HealthKit and HomeKit, so you can monitor your physical condition and maybe operate your home appliances, including the thermostat. Maybe even the door locks.

Still, Apple has to confront a market where getting through will be difficult, and is crying for a better solution to really take off. It happened with other ill-served markets with the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad.

Can lighting strike yet another time? I suppose we’ll have a better idea as we approach September 9th, assuming alleged random supply chain leaks become less random. Indeed, one of the commentators who appears on my radio show suggests that Apple might be building the iWatch in the U.S., thus affording them better control of potential information leaks in the supply chain. Don’t think so? What about the Mac Pro?

Maybe it’s all wishful thinking, but there is a published report suggesting that Apple might introduce an iWatch sooner than previously expected. Maybe it’s a matter of desperation, or the lack of anything new or significant from Apple. Well, other than the statement from Tim Cook that the recent slowdowns in iPad sales amounted to a speed bump of some sort. Maybe.

So far the speculation about an Apple wearable pointed to a fall introduction, probably in October, with shipping to begin shortly thereafter, or at least far enough in advance of the holiday season to get the maximum number of sales. But there is that new report from Re/Code’s John Paczkowski, who is one of those supposedly well-connected reporters with close ties with Apple, suggesting it’ll be part of next month’s iPhone launch event.

Now remember that Re/Code is the successor to All Things D, which famously sponsored conferences that featured such industry figures as Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer and Tim Cook. In other words, this is a source that has to be taken seriously, which is why the story is getting quite a bit of traction.

At the same time, though, there doesn’t seem to be much or any chatter about an iWatch from the supply chain, or at least the rumor sites aren’t reporting any. You’d think that a new Apple gadget, just a couple of weeks from introduction, would already be in production and thus some information would leak and make it into the media. That hasn’t happened.

What has happened is speculation that Apple might have run into problems developing and assembling an iWatch, and a recent rumor had it that it might not be released until late this year or early in 2015. That would be a loss for Apple, since a holiday season would be missed. But of course there’s no confirmation of any of this. There are always rumors about Apple-related production difficulties.

In short, there is as yet no such thing as an iWatch except for ongoing media speculation, and the fact that Cook has admitted the company is interested in wearables. But does a wearable mean a wristwatch? I suppose that would be a very convenient way to deliver such a device, so it seems to make sense.

Now I suppose Apple could launch the new iPhones, announce the release of iOS 8 — and perhaps OS X Yosemite — and deliver the magical, mystical “one more thing” coda. This would produce a loud round of applause from at least some of the assembled journalists. Well at least the ones who don’t worry about being fair and balanced.

You’d see a demonstration of the iWatch along with the announcement of the shipping date and pricing for all configurations. But actual shipment may not occur until some time in October or, at the latest, early November.

This sort of announcement wouldn’t stretch logic. It’s a first generation product, and thus asking you to wait a month or two to buy one isn’t unusual for Apple. There is no risk of killing sales for an existing gadget, and it would certainly send the competition scrambling to figure out how they can devise something with which to compete.

What is being claimed about the iWatch is that it’ll offer health and fitness-related apps and sensors. Thus, it would probably use a slimmed own version of iOS 8 and the HealthKit. The full range of the features is another huge question mark, as is the extent of integration with your iPhone.

One thing I’d like to see is the ability to do most of its stuff without that iPhone link. Otherwise you’d have a doorstop beyond just showing date and time. I would also expect that an iWatch would be quite different from the competing products in the so-called smartphone space.

So the Moto 360, Samsung Galaxy Gear, and even the Pebble, might be products that appear to exist in an alternate universe. But that’s nothing new for Apple.

Don’t forget that there were indeed digital music players before the iPod arrived. Most were forgettable, and though I reviewed some of them at the time, I couldn’t possibly recall the brand names or any specifics about them, other than the fact that they were slow and not easy to use.

The main argument against an Apple smartwatch is that this is a category that has so far gone nowhere. Maybe sales in the hundreds of thousands are just fine for a small startup such as Pebble. But Apple needs to sell millions of them for it to make sense.

As to pricing, I wouldn’t hazard a guess. But it does seem that if any iWatch can serve as an integrated mobile phone, there would be the inevitable carrier subsidies to buy one. Adding a cellular radio, with LTE and all, isn’t going to be cheap, and it would be hard to believe that Apple could build an iWatch that serves as a mini-smartphone without charging $400-500 for one.

But all this discussion is probably useless at this point. In less than two weeks, we’ll know the facts. But that assumes the latest speculation, however well sourced, is accurate.