islate? ipad? Has Anyone Got An iota?

Above: a mock up of what Apple's "iSlate" might look like, as conceived by Fotoboer.nl, modelled in 3dsmax from scratch

Apple will introduce their new creation this week (Wednesday 27 January) to great fanfares in San Francisco – but does anyone know what it will be called?

What is known is that Apple plan to unveil their new media tablet, but such is the secrecy no one appears sure as to what it will be called! Reports suggest the new invention will be called ‘iSlate’ however fresh rumours emerged today that bosses were thinking of making a last minute name change in an effort to differentiate the new tablet from Microsoft’s new Slate PC.

The rumours have left everyone guessing and Paddy Power betting as to what jazzy name will be unveiled to them next week.

The odds on Apple sticking with iSlate are 4/5 with while it’s 7/4 they switch to iPad, 6/1 they opt for the name iTablet, 8/1 for iPage and 25/1 they completely change the name to iCon. There are even 500/1 odds available that bosses will go for Etch-a-Sketch after the popular 1970s toy the new gadget is said to resemble.

Paddy Power said: “Everybody is eagerly anticipating Apple’s new creation – and while there seems to be a question mark over its name it could also be a clever ploy by Apple to get people talking ahead of next week.”

What will Apple's New Product be called?

4/5 iSlate
7/4 iPad
6/1 Tablet
8/1 iPage
9/1 iPaper
12/1 iRead
16/1 iProd
20/1 iCan
20/1 iBoard
25/1 iCon
33/1 Magic Slate
50/1 The Apple Core
100/1 The Googlebuster
100/1 The Microsoftener
100/1 The Apple Peeler
200/1 iCan't believe it's not a paper
500/1 Etch-a-Sketch

A prominent investment baking firm said this week that the new device may sell an estimated five million units in its first year as a "base case" scenario, and Apple's tablet would earn the company $2.8 billion in additional revenue and solidify it as more than a niche product.

• For a comprehensive archive of all rumors surrounding Apple's tablet device, check out the AppleInsider website's Newton and tablet topics pages, or review its exclusive reports on the product (below) dating back to the fall of 2007. Also of potential interest may be a recent feature article: The inside track on Apple's tablet: a history of tablet computing.