So now that we’ve got a confirmation on a new iPhone unveiling along with a release date, let’s dig a little deeper. After all, what the hell else do we have to do now?

I saw a bunch of rumbles on Twitter yesterday analyzing the articles about the the upcoming Apple event, and more specifically about the lack of an iPad “mini” mention in Jim Dalrymple’s post. Now we all know Jim is quite deliberate in his posting, but maybe he missed it or forgot? I doubt it. This is actually the first time since these rumors came to the surface that I thought “Maybe there isn’t an iPad mini”. Sounds crazy, but follow me here. Let’s think about what we’ve seen since the iPhone 4S release.

• Boatloads of iPhone 5 talk (please stop calling it that) that predates the iPhone 4S.
• Even more iPhone related part leaks.
• Almost a year’s worth of chatter about an 8” iPad.
• Tim Cook’s “double down” interview at D10.
• A retina MacBook Pro that no one saw coming. (Yes there was talk of a retina display, but no one correctly forecasted the model that was actually released)

A quick search shows us that there have been a ton of iPhone related leaks over the past few months. Way more than normal. Yes, I remember the iPhone 4, but if it wasn’t for a simple mistake we would’ve never seen it before its release. So what strikes me this time, is the volume of new iPhone part leaks. We’re talking fully assembled bodies. Contrast that with the complete lack of iPad mini leaks. Is it that Tim Cook made good on his promise to “double down” on secrecy? Highly doubtful unless these new iPhone leaks are fake. Is that even possible in this day and age? Could Apple possibly pull that off? In my opinion; absolutely. Rewind to the morning of February 16th. Absolutely no one outside of those invited to learn about Mountain Lion saw it coming. In fact, I remember people thinking it was a joke (myself included). Now I know an OS is much easier to keep under wraps than hardware, but the lack of 8” iPad leaks paired with overwhelming iPhone leaks can only mean one of two things: either the iPad mini doesn’t exist, or Tim Cook and his crew are magicians. I guess we’ll find out in September.