It’s said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery; then Apple should be quite flattered right about now. Not only are certain Chinese companies interested in copying the iPod, it seems a top tier company is interested in something more sinister. Sony has seemingly copied some elements of the MacBook design and incorporated them into its new TZ series laptops.

With the iPhone sleeping peacefully in stores until tomorrow’s debut, OS X Tiger winning fans long-associated with the Windows camp, and Leopard poising itself for complete domination of a currently feeble next-gen OS showing, Apple is solidifying itself as the champion of consumer hearts in all aspects of life. 2007 is quickly proving itself to be the year that Apple flexes its creative muscle and engrains itself in the hearts and minds of consumers worldwide with its powerful trifecta: the iPod, the iPhone, and OS X.

So you’ve decided you will take all necessary measures to make sure an iPhone is in your hands on Friday, right? I recently provided a method for joining AT&T and receiving almost $200 off your iPhone purchase here, but what do you do if you’re locked into your carrier?

Anyone would be a fool to not think the iPhone is a cool device, it is but what it lacks in features cannot be overlooked either. It may be sleek but it lacks some basic features that other (less cool) phones offer up in droves.

Sprint, in stark contrast to Verizon’s deny-all-threat-posed-by-iPhone mentality, has released a document to its employees in preparation for the iPhone release. This document reveals Sprint anticipates losing 6% of its customer base to iPhone business, and includes ways to defend against losing business, with everything from highlighting mp3 functionality of Sprint smartphones to quoting sources who say things like, “industry analysts and publishers agree that Sprint leads the industry in technology and innovation.”…oh, how the mighty have fallen.

Apple can’t catch a break these days from CPU whining sounds, flickering displays and cracking computer cases it seems they aren’t used to all this negative attention. Apple just released the 10.4.10 update for OSX Tiger which is causing headaches for some users.

One of the first things done surrounding Windows Vista was releasing all the betas to the public in mass; it is very well known that any savvy user can obtain a full working copy of nearly any Microsoft operating system via bit torrents or other means. However, such is not the case with OS X Leopard, as there are no copies of the near-complete OS circulating the internet; could this be due to a more unified and progress-minded user base in Apple fans?

What better way to showcase your next newest flagship product than to put up oversized display units with real LCD screens? There is no better way. Apple and AT&T stores are putting up oversized demo units of the iPhone, for now they just appear to looping a video demonstrating the features.

Many have hypothesized about the iPhone’s potential to function as a next-gen portable VoIP device, as the iPhone’s WiFi and technology could easily handle the task. Unfortunately, dreams of free worldwide calling via WiFi/IP are virtually dashed on the rocks of services fees and data plans that will not be optional for potential iPhone adopters.

If Apple hadn’t fully “brought it” on the iPhone until now, the full gammit has now been thrown down: Apple informed the public today in a press release that the iPhone’s previous talk time of 5 hours is going to be actually 8 full hours of talk time, and the controversial touch-screen will be composed of a sturdy glass top surface.