Once again, the rumors have begun. With the recent Apple patents and the far-fetched theories Think Secret is throwing out, the world of Apple has been buzzing with hints of the real iPod Video soon hitting the shelves. With pictures and videos flying everhywhere you look, it’s hard to believe it can’t be true. And for a second, I dismissed it all as total speculation. And then I realized the truth.

I know Think Secret has started to lose their reputation, especially after their whole Macworld fiasco, getting everything but the obvious iLife ‘06 right. But they’ve been very correct in the past. They guessed right about the iPod Shuffle and the Mac Mini during last year’s Macworld Expo; they also were right about the second generation iPod Minis, as well as the iBooks and Mac Minis being updated back in July. And even though no one knew the Nano was coming, Think Secret accurately predicted a flash music player was on its way in September. They’ve had some pretty good winning streaks, and I would expect nothing less from Think Secret.

And I do have to admit, I’m a rumor fan. I peruse through dozens of Apple rumor websites, searching for the next big thing that hasn’t appeared yet. Sure, a lot of it is pure speculation, but hearing about plasma TVs, tablet Macs, and the Next Big Thing has always been a thrill to me. I’ve been to them all: MacRumors, ThinkSecret, AppleInsider, MacOSXRumors, World of Apple, and more, with all their websites bookmarked in Safari. But after expecting to see Mac Minis with DVR, Intel iBooks, and iPod Shuffles with LCDs at Macworld, I was distraught and just gave up on rumor searching. Hundreds of rumors floated around, not one passing by my ears.

Suddenly, I hear off of World of Apple about a new Apple patent; now this was something I could believe! I read about it on every Mac website on the internet, watch as the jaw-dropping video on Multi-Touch Interaction debuted, and wish and hope for something like the new mock-up of the real video iPod.

So will we get it? Who knows; the patent information, especially the images, are very convincing, but the Vingle trademark failed to excite when it debuted, and the Mobile Me is yet to be seen. As for the video, we’ve all seen amazing technologies on TV, but almost none of them make it to the consumer. And as for me, until I see my Video iPod, I’ll be slashing my way through rumors to find the truth.