The Apple Tablet: an all-in-one multimedia device with a touch pad you use like an iPhone and a screen the size of a laptop. If were to exist, someday, it might have a movie player, an e-reader, a properly sized web browser...  But right now, it's an entirely imaginary device.  Apple is, as usual, staying silent ahead of their next public event on September 9th.

With iPhone sales at 5.4 million units in the last quarter alone, there's no wonder expectations are high for Steve Jobs to build this. To find out why the tablet has techies so revved up, we speak to Sam Grobart, personal technology editor for The New York Times, and Queena Kim, who produces a podcast called CyberFrequencies at KPCC Public Radio in Los Angeles.

The city of Baltimore, Maryland, is quietly working on a potentially groundbreaking technological project: wireless. WiMax, the super high speed wireless internet network spreading throughout the city, is broadcast from cell phone towers and is much faster than the 3G network used by cell phones, DSL, or cable modems. While other countries such as Israel, Korea, and Japan already know the technology, the U.S. has been slow to adopt the trend. Sam Grobart, the personal technology editor at The New York Times, and Peter Wayner, a contributing tech writer for The New York Times and author of Translucent Databases 2Nd Edition: Confusion, Misdirection, Randomness, Sharing, Authentication And Steganography To Defend Privacy, talk us through the pros and cons of the new wireless.

Google has announced it is planning to launch an operating system for personal computers. This move is seen as a direct challenge to Microsoft's dominance in the PC operating system market. Google's move worries privacy groups—and also competitors—who argue that the online search company could leverage its data stores to quickly grow market share. For more, The Takeaway is joined by Sam Grobart, personal technology editor for The New York Times.

Now that Google is rolling out a free phone management service, phone use is becoming more like email and instant messaging. Join The Takeaway and New York Times personal technology editor Sam Grobart as we play with a powerful new means of communicating and managing your identity in a world of instant communications.

PLAY TELEPHONE WITH US!

Google Voice has a transcription service, but it's far from perfect. We're playing with it's flaws by having people leave a message with part of the Gettysburg address. Click through here, then click the Google Voice image, enter your phone number and when it connects you, pick a section below and read it. We'll post the (imperfect) transcripts later.

The iPhone is getting cheaper. Yesterday Apple announced it was slashing the price of the current iPhone in half just as it launches a new version, which is the third new model since 2007. This comes days after Palm launches it's so-called "iPhone killer," the Palm Pre. New York Times personal technology editor Sam Grobart helps us navigate the buying frenzy.

Watch an ad for the iPhone 3G S below.