OK - so I may have recently trashed the latest rumors of an iPod phone, but if the latest Apple patent filings are anything to go by, there actually might be some value in the stories this time. Technology business Web site Red Herring has reported that Apple Computer has filed a patent for a device that incorporates a phone, portable computing device and media player.

Of course this is just one more in a long line of cynical patent registrations by IT companies of fundamentally basic concepts that lack any novelty whatsoever. Can anyone say Walkman phone? Or Windows Mobile? Exactly how long is the US Patent Office going to allow this charade to continue? These guys aren't patenting a cure for cancer - it's an obvious extension of existing technology.

That aside - this patent filing comes hard on the heels of even more chatter from technology consultants about Apple's plans for an iPhone. With Microsoft's, albeit lackluster, entry into the digital music player market Apple will have to be looking at the next step for the iPod. We'll keep you updated on the latest rumors - and one day maybe someday we will actually see some product.

[via Red Herring]