The talk on the Street is about parallels with 2008. The Aden Sisters, who publish the respected ‘The Aden Forecast’, wrote a piece in MarketWatch entitled ‘Beginning to Look a Lot Like 2008’. They say “we're hearing more talk about a 2008 repeat and this is indeed a possibility. In fact, more signs are starting to point in that direction...”.

Now that Steve Jobs has departed, a 2008-style crash is probably the biggest fear of the average Apple (AAPL) investor. So it pays to take a look at Apple’s technicals and assess the likelihood that this could occur. I thought it would be interesting to compare Apple’s current stock chart with that of 2008, to see if there really are parallels that we can actually see in the price action.

What I found is disturbing.

Take a look at the first chart below, which covers the period

Make no mistake about it - Tuesday 4th October is a critical day for everybody connected with Apple (AAPL). It's a critical day for Apple fans because we all get to see the new iPhone we’ve been reading (or dreaming) about for the last 16 months. It’s a critical day for AAPL investors because we get to see the latest version of Apple’s most important product - accounting for 45% of revenue earned in the first 9 months of the company’s fiscal year 2011. But it’s also a critical day for Apple’s new CEO Tim Cook as he takes to the stage for possibly the biggest keynote speech of his life.

Here are three reasons why Cook is facing an unenviable and daunting task today:

1) There is likely to be as much attention focused on Cook as the form of the product he will wave aloft at the

It's officially 3 weeks to the day of Apple’s (AAPL) Q4 report and the rumour-mill is entering overdrive. Apple stock is trading under $400 - off more than 2% - on a rumour that several suppliers have lowered fourth-quarter iPad orders by 25%. Immediate reaction is split between the bulls and the bears.

The bulls are arguing that this could be the precursor to an iPad 3 launch. One report suggests Apple could be shifting production from China to Foxconn’s Brazil plant. JP Morgan’s Mark Moskowitz is retaining Q4 iPad numbers despite the rumour. Susquehanna analyst Chris Caso says:

“We believe chatter regarding iPad production cuts are misleading – we have seen pull-ins, not cuts. We have noted recent comments by competitors discussing iPad production cuts for 4Q. Our recently published AAPL supply-chain checks noted a sequential decline in 4Q iPad builds from 17 mln-19 mln

Investors are currently focused on the battle raging between Google’s (GOOG) Android and Apple’s (AAPL) iOS ecosystems. Android’s growth is staggering and market share has recently surged past iOS in the smartphone space and shows no sign of slowing any time soon.

(click to enlarge images)

According to ComScore data (chart from Fortune Tech), Android overtook iOS late last year and RIM (RIMM) in early 2011. Nokia (NOK) smartphones currently run Symbian – once the darling of the last-generation of smartphones – but you will notice that doesn’t even feature in ComScore’s analysis, and reflects Symbian’s decline in the US market. This shows just how quickly Apple and its iOS ecosystem has kick-started a whole paradigm shift in mobile.

So how should investors react to the partnership between Nokia and Microsoft (MSFT) to replace Symbian with Windows Phone 7? The market was clearly not enamoured with the

When was the last time an analyst had a 'sell' recommendation on AAPL? Can't remember? Neither can I. But recently we have seen a few analysts and respected bloggers beginning to think the unthinkable - could AAPL's formidable track record be about to hit a blip?

All of this started with JMP Securities analyst Alex Gauna downgrading AAPL to Market Perform. Shocking, misguided, or possibly brave? JMP may have gone out on a limb to hit the headlines, and in that sense they certainly succeeded, but whatever you think about the legitimacy of that infamous downgrade it has prompted a flurry of speculation about AAPL's short-term health. With almost universally bullish sentiment surrounding the company, investors would be wise to take this opportunity to reflect.

There has been furious speculation about the condition of Apple's supply chain in light of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Just how much