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Rumor Roundup: Drain-circling credibility

Chris Rawson
Updated ·5 min read
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Analyst: Apple could equip 5.5" 'iPhone 6' with more powerful processor than 4.7" model (AppleInsider)

Some analyst makes entirely evidence-free claims about a next-generation Apple product. The rumor blogs react not with the sort of skepticism that would be appropriate for these almost always incorrect "sources," but instead pass on this drivel without even a nod in the general direction of anything resembling actual journalism.

The short version: this complete non-story is absolutely typical of the current extremely poor state of tech journalism.

The short-short version: Analysts don't know what they're talking about when they talk about Apple.

Will Apple drop Intel chips anytime soon? (Macworld)

Since this headline was phrased as a question, we all know the answer is "no."

The why of that "no" answer hasn't changed one bit since this whole "Apple will build ARM-based Macs" nonsense began several years ago. Intel processors are still an order of magnitude more powerful than ARM processors in terms of overall CPU performance. Until or unless that changes, no, Apple will not be "dropping Intel chips anytime soon."

BAD NEWS, iPHONE FANS: Now we know why the iPhone 6's release date might get pushed back to October (BGR)

BAD NEWS, BGR FANS: Whoever is in charge of writing headlines for your favorite publication has apparently sustained 57 head injuries this week. And your article writers rely on completely terrible sources like "accurate" analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. But the WORST NEWS OF ALL for you BGR fans? You're fans of BGR. Seek medical attention immediately.

Apple to Hold iPhone Event on Sept. 9 (re/code)

John Paczkowski hasn't been wrong yet. As for whoever Photoshopped the accompanying image for this article: don't quit your day job. Unless your day job is "graphic designer," in which case yes, by all means, quit.

iPHONE 6 reveal date CONFIRMED! (BGR)

It's in ALL-CAPS, so it MUST BE TRUE.

However, saying that Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal's ramblings "confirm" anything about Apple, ever, is nonsense at best and egregious truth-mangling at the worst. Neither of those publications have the slightest clue about Apple's internal goings-on, and they've proved it with a neverending tsunami of terribly-sourced articles that turn out to be complete nonsense.

I'm pretty confident that Paczkowski's sources are solid, but saying that Bloomberg or the Journal "confirm" his prediction is like saying an astrologer "confirmed" scientific results obtained from one of the Mars rovers. "Mmm, yes... Mars is in Taurus, and the Moon is in the seventh house. I can confirm that water flowed in the vicinity of Gale Crater as recently as 150 million years ago."

Report Claims 4.7-Inch iPhone 6 Will Feature 2,100 mAh Battery (MacRumors)

Some analyst makes entirely evidence-free claims about a next-generation Apple product... whoa, deja vu. Extra negative non-bonus points for this analyst being from China, AKA the cement overshoes of credibility when it comes to Apple rumors.

New leak gives us a fresh, up-close look at the iPhone 6 (BGR)

From the article: "The device in the images shared on Titter by @cecilymohammed is likely a dummy unit, or an iPhone 6 clone, although it's not turned on in any of the pictures." (sic)

I'm not sure what's more hilarious: that BGR is still blatantly disregarding the appropriate definition of a "leak" when it posts these BS articles about iPhone mockups, or that BGR misspelled Twitter as "Titter."

Apple's iPhone 6 line will sport faster Wi-Fi, improved fingerprint reader, A8 chip confirmed (exclusive) (VentureBeat)

From the article: "Our source stresses that the above represents the picture of the devices today and that, in the past, specific features have disappeared from the shipping product in the final weeks before launch. So this may not be the final spec list for the shipping phones."

I'll bet a shiny nickel that VentureBeat's "source" said absolutely nothing of the kind, and this paragraph is just VentureBeat's pitiful attempt to cover its arse in case this story turns out to be complete BS. Which it most likely will. When MacRumors calls you out and says your sources "have not been particularly reliable in the past," it's not a good sign. I mean, MacRumors happily reblogs everything that flows from the sewage outlets at Digitimes without saying a word about their terrible track record, so if MacRumors is actually taking the trouble to reveal your poor accuracy, it must be pretty awful indeed.

Gruber: Apple to announce 'iWatch' next month (AppleInsider)

This article is a perfect example of everything wrong with tech reporting today. In an article on Daring Fireball, John Gruber made a throwaway comment about Apple announcing "their wrist wearable thing next month." It was pretty obvious to me that he was taking the mickey, but several rumor blogs went ballistic and reposted this comment all over the place as though it were a pronouncement from the mountaintop simply because Gruber is "well-connected" (to be fair, he is, but he's the kind of well-connected that doesn't waste it on stuff like this).

Unfortunately for the continually drain-circling credibility of the rumor blogs, Gruber himself was quick to point out how ridiculous their reactions were.

The only way this could get funnier would be if Apple announces their wearable thing next month, and it has nothing to do with your wrist.