Some people get 'excited' about going on a holiday, taking a skydive, maybe getting married. Apple lovers can get excited about 'docking stations', the thinness of a keyboard, or whether a computer is connected via USB or wirelessly.

Such is the height of anticipation ahead of today's speech by Steve Jobs at Apple's annual MacWorld conference - an event where the company traditionally releases new products - that even the slightest whiff of rumour about what might be announced is being pored over by Apple-obsessed bloggers the world over.

In the past weeks, a broad consensus has emerged that Apple is likely to reveal a new, thinner laptop - which bloggers have taken to calling 'ultraportable' - and that, thanks to a tie-up with some of the movie studios, users of its online store iTunes will soon be able to rent films from the site.

Beyond that, the speculation is rife and creative - in equal measure.

In the final hours before Mr Jobs, Apple's chief executive, gives his speech - he will take the stage, almost certainly in his trademark black turtle neck and jeans, at 9am in San Francisco - debate is focused on the finer details of the new machine, which would appear to be an evolution of the MacBook, Apple's laptop line.

Wired, the respected technology site, put its hat in the ring late last night with a purported lowdown on the new device from an 'Apple insider'. It is "unbelievably thin," the site wrote, "made of aluminium and glass" and is shaped "like a teardrop," with a thicker section near the hinge tapering to a thin end closer to the user.

Mock-up images of the machine Wired claimed to have had described to it attracted the hyberbolic phrase that has become a trademark of Apple fans. "This is *beautiful.* -Insert techno-lust here-," wrote 'Hilary'.

"That's gonna be so tight I want one of those," seconded 'halo3sixty'.

Other sites were simply happy to be peddling the fact that an address from Steve Jobs was nigh. "Are you excited?," wrote Justin Ezarik, on his blog Tasty Blog Snack last night. "I know I am, so I thought I’d see if everyone else was excited. Get ready — because the keynote is TOMORROW!

"What rabbit El Jobso pull out of his hat marked one-more-thing?," wrote Ryan Block, on the respected gadget site Engadget.

Ben Gracewood, on the blog gadgetophile, had his answer - and a precise one at that. "I had an odd premonition while riding the scooter home tonight. It involved Apple releasing a Mac tablet with Wacom-level sensitivity and control. Or even a Mac-Wacom collaboration. Could be completely off base, but I’m posting it up for the record."

One of the more curious strands of speculation has been about what Apple's new device - should it materalise - will be called. Several days ago, Apple unvealed the posters that would greet guests at the conference, with the slogan 'There's something in the air', prompting a flurry of suggestions as to what the 'air' reference might mean.

Then MacDailyNews - another site that documents Apple's every move - noticed that several domain names with the words 'MacBook' and 'Air' - and combinations thereof - had recently been registered, apparently by a company that could, possibly, be acting on Apple's behalf.

Among the names registered by MarkMonitor, were MacBookAir.net, MacBookAir.org, MacBookAir.us, MacBookAir.info, MacBookAir.biz, the site wrote.

"Typically, this information can be faked, but the registration also shares an internal billing ID (MKN-14211616) which is indeed Apple's (based on other domains)," MacRumors, another Apple-chasing site, wrote.

For a couple of readers the suggestions were a step of guesswork too far and comment about Apple's new 'air'-themed product descended into farce. "It's a new line of fragrances," wrote Magdunde on MacDaily News."You can give any old laptop that 'new MacBook smell' with a couple squirts from a bottle of MacBook Air by Apple."

"Something in the Air? I'll bet Apple is starting an airline," wrote 'Bill'. "Maybe Apple is going to fix air travel in this country. While cruising on Apple Air you can also buy a Mac at 35,000 feet.

Other readers got fed up with the constant efforts to read Steve Jobs' mind. One comment on the site 9 to 5 Mac read: "When will people learn and stop behaving like pubertal kids. Perhaps it will have the name, perhaps not but saying it won't or will for sure is like making a fool of oneself."

None of the faithful have much longer to wait before being put out of their misery. Mr Jobs's keynote is now just hours away.

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