Some people seem to think that rumors about Apple are a recent phenomenon. For whatever reason, Apple customers have long clamored for rumors about unreleased Apple products.

The first Apple rumor that I remember coming across and getting excited about was one for the Apple //gs+. For those who don’t remember, Apple’s first computer was the Apple I in 1976 which gave way to the Apple II series. The Apple //gs was released in 1986 and represented the last of the Apple II product line.

This Usenet post from May 1988, courtesy of Google Groups, reflects the gist of the Apple //gs+ rumors from the time:

Here is some info I picked up off one of the boards I call. Whether it is true or not I leave up to you to decide.
————————————————————————— —
Apple IIGS Plus info:
————————————————————————— —

I got a wonderful little package from apple this afternoon: the long-awaited GS+. Boy, this machine is AWESOME!

Here are a couple of the new changes.

faster processor. I don’t know how fast it is, as big A didn’t include much technical information with the machine. it looks like it is about 3 times the speed of the normal gs. speeds can be selected in the control panel, as normal, fast, and the new speed, aptly labeled “faster”. the graphics fly at this new speed. there is still no hardware graphics chip, which is a bit of a dissapointment, but the new speed makes that irrelevant.
….
graphics. apple has given us three new super hires modes. a 320×200 mode with 256 colors/line, a 640×200 mode with 16 colors/line, a 320×400 mode with 16 colors/line and a 640×400 mode, with 4 colors per line.
….
mac. it was hinted at that apple may be developing a macintosh card for the gs and gs+, allowing the computer to run the majority of macintosh software.
….
please don’t spread this special information around, as apple would not be happy if this got out to the public. I will post more info as I discover it. this new machine has alot of potential!

Sadly, the Apple //gs+ never came to pass, and the Apple II line was discontinued. One prototype model (codenamed Mark Twain) was revealed years later.

Some details about the prototype machine have been posted, but with far more modest improvements than the rumors had suggested.

Who would have known that almost 20 years later, the Apple rumor scene would still be going strong.