Rumor sites are buzzing with the news that a seven inch iPad could be in the works from Apple (AAPL). The source article, a translated Taiwan Times article, claims the seven inch iPad will be manufactured by sources other than Apple's usual partner, Foxconn. Compal, instead, would be used, as Apple is claimed to be trying to diversify its suppliers.

The rumored iPad would also be 1.1 pounds, instead of 1.5 pounds, allaying concerns some have about how heavy the first generation iPad was. The screen resolution would be the same.

Netbook sales drove the bottom line for a number of laptop manufacturers, and it was the hot new category for the previous two years. Now there are increasing signs that Apple, Inc. (AAPL)'s iPad is cannibalizing netbook sales.

According to DigiTimes, and as reported on by many sites today, Asustek, well known for its success in Netbook manufacturing, is seeing its bottom line hit hard. While the Eee PC line, which introduced the world to Netbooks, will continue, it will be with smaller numbers. Apple, on the other hand, is no doubt gearing up for a holiday rush.

Recently, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares sold off on the announcement that company leader Steve Jobs would skip the keynote address at the next Macworld convention. This news fueled speculation that Jobs was in poor health.

Concern over succession at AAPL has become sport of late, and it's a big deal to certain investors. Shares dropped some $15 on the news.

Shares of AAPL have fallen more than 50% since late last year, even though the company has solidified its position in the PC market, maintained its lead in digital music and introduced one of the most exciting, must-have electronic items in 2008 -- the iPhone

AAPL is THE definitive growth company, and it is positioned to do well despite a weak economy.

That strength will translate into a dominant position in the market when times are good and consumers are flush with cash.

Think about it. If people are buying AAPL products when times are tough, imagine what will happen when consumers feel more confident about the future.

Hello, I am a PC, but I want to be a Mac.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is recently down $3.53 to $91.90 in pre-open trading. Steve Jobs has pulled out of his annual address at Macworld on January 6. Oppenheimer says: "Maybe he's not feeling well, or maybe he just has nothing new to say." AAPL January option implied volatility of 69 is above its 26-week average of 56 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Volatility Index S&P 500 Options - VIX at 52.36; 10-day moving average is 57.66 according to Track Data.

NASDAQ 100 - QQQQ overall implied volatility at 51; 26-week average is 46.

Semiconductor Holders Trust - SMH overall volatility at 59; 26-week average is 47.

Russell 2000 - IWM overall implied volatility at 67; 26-week average is 47.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) will not be attending trade show Macworld after January. Steve Jobs will not be giving the keynote. Apple's stock dropped 5% after hours on the news.

It is too bad. There was no reason for the shares to drop. As has been pointed out in the past, the Apple board would probably have to disclose any problem with Jobs' health. The trade show business is a dying breed. The firm made its reasons clear in a statement: "The increasing popularity of Apple's Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways."

Trade shows are an ineffective way to promote products especially in an age where they can be shown over the web.. Many of the people who come to the exhibit halls are just tire kickers. Participating companies can spend hundreds of thousand of dollars on elaborate displays and personnel.. And, for what? A modest amount of promotion.

Jobs may have an excellent reason not to speak next month. Apple may not have a blockbuster product to release. That would make his appearance "ordinary", and that is not Steve Jobs.

Time for Apple investors to settle down.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

In what seems like an event that's more like the Academy Awards, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs will take center stage at San Francisco's Moscone Center on Monday to announce something. That "something," if you've been paying attention to tech news over the last month in any corner of the globe, will be the second version of the iPhone.

Expect Apple's stock activity and message board nuttiness to be in overdrive until a few minutes before Jobs give his messiah-like speech about something. You see, the religious love affair much of the media (and diehard Apple fans) have with the company and Jobs himself will create so much buzz that it would not be surprising to see Apple shares top $200 easily and maybe go beyond their 52-week high. That high will come just as Jobs lets the word drop on the next iPhone.

As Timothy Sykes reminds you, don't consider this a prime opportunity to buy Apple. Although, sitting at $190 before the market opens this morning may tempt you, what do you gain with a rise to $200 per share? 5%? If that's good for you in a day or two -- if it happens -- more power to you.

There are some who time their Apple profits on the two meetings or so per year that happen from Apple's top guy (known as Steve-o), but an investing strategy for the long term and a frenzied quest for an extremely short-term gain are two totally different things. I'll be watching with interest this Monday, but still won't have added Apple shares to my stable.

Here are a few highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) had a lackluster quarter due in part to the acquistion of ATI.
• AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) posted a larger than expected loss due to rising fuel costs.
• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares are hunkered down post-MacWorld but ahead of the Q1 report.
• Genentech Inc. (NYSE: DNA) beat earnings estimates, though its growth is slowing.
• General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) forecasts earnings growth on cost-cutting and overseas sales.
• IBM (NYSE: IBM) had an impressive fourth quarter and expects a good 2008 (see transcript).
• Intel Corp.'s (NASDAQ: INTC) solid results failed to impress investors (see transcript).
• Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) posted a solid first quarter, with growth in all divisions.
• New Oriental Educational & Technology Group Inc. (NYSE: EDU) posted disappointing results.
• Novartis AG (NYSE: NVS) profits fell on restructuring costs and increased competition for generics.
• Sony Ericsson beat estimates and is gaining market share in the global cell phone market.
• TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) revised its fourth quarter outlook after strong December sales.
• Vignette Corp. (NASDAQ: VIGN) raised its fourth quarter revenue guidance, which buoyed shares.
• Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM) lowered its guidance on weak holiday sales.

See additional earnings highlights. Also, Jim Cramer ponders the ennui of the new earnings season. Georges Yared is bullish on tech stocks, and big tech executives are bullish as well. Jonathan Berr looks ahead to upcoming big tech reports.

Other upcoming results to watch for include Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN), eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT), Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM), Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), E*Trade Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFN), and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is set to release Q1 earnings next Tuesday for the quarter ended in December. Average analyst estimates peg the tech company's earnings at $1.61 per share, which would be a 41% improvement on last year's quarterly earnings. Although some believe Apple is overvalued on the fundamentals and is overpriced, momentum can sometimes outweigh standard market measures.

Apple shares have hunkered down in recent days amid what the market must be considering a mediocre array of announcements this past Tuesday at Macworld. Although a cutting-edge laptop and what I consider to be a paradigm-shifting update to the Apple TV were both announced, there was no iPod or iPhone fever. Unfortunately, panicky market makers started sending Apple's shares down immediately.

But then again, Apple did say that it has sold 4 million iPhones since launch. Next week, we'll get to find out how many of those were sold for the holiday season this year, which could send Apple shares back on an upward trend again. What could be Apple's most anticipated quarterly results in the last four quarters is set for next Tuesday. Stay with BloggingStocks, as we'll delve into the results once they are released.

Oooh, ahh, oh. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) announced its newest luscious piece of hardware, the MacBook Air, today at the MacWorld conference. Every one of my geeky friends on Twitter wants the newest, thinnest, most desirable piece of hardware since the iPhone (one of my friends has already purchased one, in fact) -- but most of us can't afford it.

Could it be because we're just not Jobsian enough?

I was ooh-ing and ahh-ing over the MacBook Air on Engadget's hands-on photo gallery when I saw this photo, above. Notice something? Each and every MacWorld attendee allowed to touch the super-light laptop is wearing a variation on Steve Jobs' trademark black mock turtleneck. Sure, there are a few button-up shirts, a sport coat, a crewneck or two, but all is a sea of black. Note to self: If I go to MacWorld next year, wear orange! And see what happens. All that conformity could be key to Apple's stock price (seriously!): Apple followers, both spiritual and financial, tend to behave a bit like lemmings.

While the staff at Engadget prepares for Steve Jobs' verbal onslaught tomorrow at the Macworld conference in San Francisco, investors will be dancing around today with visions of new Apple products in their heads.

This time last year, Jobs dropped the iPhone on the world and the cellphone market hasn't been the same since. Instead of giving into the death grip wireless carriers had on handsets and customers as well, Jobs gave the power to itself and the customer. So the world will be asking today: what exactly is up Steve's sleeve? Answers abound, but probably just a few key people really know what's going to go down this week at Macworld. Right now, Jobs has those people bound and gagged behind his Macworld stage. Just kidding.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s stock will start the day slightly over $172 per share after touching $200 just a few weeks ago. If there is any hype, it can't possibly be bigger than the iPhone that was rumored to be announced a year ago -- and was. Could there be any higher expectation tomorrow when Jobs announces ... whatever he will announce? Very doubtful. Whatever comes out of Apple's coffers tomorrow during Jobs' keynote will probably disappoint the market compared to the nuttiness the iPhone announcement generated.

Does that mean Apple's future is dimming? Not at all -- but the company may have set itself up for media questions like "is this all Apple could announce?" come tomorrow unless it can surpass the market buzz the iPhone generated. Two candidates have emerged: a mini-laptop that weighs a few pounds and a smaller iPhone that works on faster 3G wireless data networks. Would a newer, smaller iPhone kick the Apple investment community into high gear? Absolutely.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is trading at $173.15 at 10 am, up a bit more than 1%.

Steve Jobs is expected to introduce the Apple 3G iPhone with pricing in early 2008, and AAPL is expected to report EPS in mid-January. Macworld will be held January 14-18 in San Francisco.

AAPL January and February option implied volatility of 68 is above its 26-week average of 48 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

At any trade show featuring Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), hordes of Apple-believers start foaming at the mouth, wondering what magical sentences will float from the tongue of CEO Steve Jobs. More than any CEO in recent business history, Jobs causes an odd panic and a consuming guessing game by ardent Apple followers, with legions of websites and blogs dedicated just to what the man says, let alone what product Apple actually delivers.

MacWorld, Apple's own trade show for its developers and customers, is scheduled in a few weeks. As such, the first few weeks in January will be filled with massive buzz on the web about what new products, enhancements, initiatives or other things Jobs will announce or hint at. With the iPhone's release last year, the continuing dominance of the iPod and massive sales increases of Mac PCs from the company, 2007 was a rather ritzy year for the company and its charismatic leader, who commands an almost god-like following in many circles.

PAPERS:

• With shares of eBay Inc (NASDAQ: EBAY) down 17% from their highs in 2007, CEO Meg Whitman is more than likely on her way out, TheDeal Blogs speculated.
• According to sources, International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) is in advanced talks to acquire the Israeli start-up XIV for 4300M-$350M, Globes reported.
• According to sources in London and New York, Merrill Lynch and Co Inc's (NYSE: MER) CEO, John Thain, is in talks with Chinese and Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds this weekend, which could lead to the sale of another big stake in the U.S. bank, the Observer reported.

WEB SITES:

• According to motherboard makers, DigiTimes reported that Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NYSE: AMD) may have the upper hand against Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) in the next IGP chipset battle.
• iLounge learned that Apple Inc (NASDAQ: APPL) is planning a push for iTunes tagging-ready, HD Radio-equipped boomboxes with iPod docks and is expected to make an announcement at Macworld in mid-January.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is recently trading at $199.84. Steve Jobs is expected to introduce the Apple 3G iPhone with pricing in early 2008. International CES will be held January 7-10 in Las Vegas. Macworld will be held January 14-18 in San Francisco. AAPL is expected to report EPS in mid-January. AAPL January option implied volatility is at 48, February is at 51, near its 26-week average of 48 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional risk.

Options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

MAJOR PAPERS:

• While United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is preparing for the busiest time of the year, high costs and a slowing economy are set to present big challenges for the Atlanta company once the holiday season is over, the Wall Street Journal reported.

OTHER PAPERS:

• BusinessWeek's "Inside Wall Street" column reported that shares of Abiomed Inc (NASDAQ: ABMD) have recovered nearly to its 52-week high of $15, rallying on buzz that the FDA could approve the company's chief product, Impella, a miniature pump at the end of a catheter, within 12 months.
• The "Inside Wall Street" column also reported that Focus Media Holding Limited (NASDAQ: FMCN), the top advertising company in Internet, Mobile and Poster/Panel Markets, should benefit from the 2008 Summer Olympics.

WEB SITES:

• According to sources and reported by AppleInsider, there have been additional sightings of an "unfamiliar MacBook model floating around" Apple Inc's (NASDAQ: AAPL) campus perhaps indicating a new Macbook is coming at next month's Macworld Expo.