The magic of Apple’s PR

Apple has created an atmosphere where there is so much buzz around impending product announcements that I wonder how much they let publicity affect their plans. Take, for example, the iPad 2. People are anticipating its release, hypothesizing about new features and speculating how it will impact the tablet market. In the middle of all this excitement, rumors surfaced that there are manufacturing delays that could possibly delay the launch (the hypothetical launch that is supposedly in the works).

People went into a frenzy.

Question: If Apple delays their iPad launch until June, other companies might get in there and take over market share. Question: Can Apple hang onto the market? Question: Does this reflect a post-Jobs Apple? An amazing sense of urgency was created about the launch of a product that hasn’t even been announced yet. Does Apple let this get to them? Are they rushing the supposedly tardy manufacturer? They cannot just ignore such speculation, but what can they do?

If you were Apple, would you turn a deaf ear to this? Would you try to meet demands/ expectations? Would you call it a double edge sword that also helped you reach cult-status?