Yesterday the tech wire was abuzz with rumors about a new Apple netbook, according to Chinese newspaper, the Commercial Times, Taiwan-based company Wintek is in the process of manufacturing touch-panel displays for a forthcoming Apple netbook, and Quanta Computer, Inc. has been charged with assembling the computers. Naturally, this isn't the first time we've heard talk of an Apple-branded netbook, but given market conditions, the timing might be right for an uber-compact and affordable Apple notebook.

With a fresh new batch of seemingly viable rumors circulating, we felt now would be the perfect time to issue our wish list for an Apple netbook, whether one is currently in production or not. We based our wish list on the assumption that the aforementioned rumors are true, and Apple is indeed considering a touch screen interface. Additionally, we assumed that an Apple-branded netbook would use mid-to-high ranged components, and thus be more expensive than your average netbook.

Design- While many mockups of the rumored netbook have pointed to an all touch-screen, tablet-style design, Apple has been pretty vocal in the past about their complete lack of interest in tablet structure. Our guess would be that an Apple netbook would use a traditional fold up screen and keyboard design. Our dream netbook would incorporate dual touch screen displays with the bottom displaying a virtual control interface and keyboard, however, a more realistic, cost-efficient design would use a physical keyboard.

In terms of aesthetic, it seems that Apple has settled in with the silver-on-black "look" for their notebook line, and if they were to debut a netbook at some point this year, our guess is that it would fall into line with that dynamic. Physical dimensions would depend largely on the hardware load out, but we expect Apple would try to match or come close to the MacBook Air in terms of weight and thickness.

Operating System- Ideally, an Apple netbook would use a stripped down version of Mac OS X Leopard, with a full desktop and dock. Programs like iDVD would be undoubtedly absent from the OS for lacking the necessary hardware (disc drive, multiple device connectors), but the standard media suite (iPhoto, iTunes, etc.) would be largely intact.

In addition to a no frills version of Leopard, we'd like to see a quick-launch OS similar to that of the Sony P Series' XMB system, which allows users to boot directly into a straightforward task-oriented system for performing simple functions like email, internet browsing, and media viewing. The quick-launch system Apple would implement would likely be similar to the mobile OS in the iPhone and iPod touch, with direct access to specific applications, first party and otherwise.

Hardware Specs- As it stands, most notebook manufacturers have maintained a pretty streamlined collection of maximum specs for their netbook series for the purpose of keeping costs low, however, we've got to think that Apple would kick it up a notch, so we took the liberty of creating our own dream spec list.

10" (1024 x 600) LED-backlit display
1.6 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor
2GB of DDR2 SDRAM
150GB solid-state drive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M
640x480 Built-in iSight web cam

Networking- As a netbook, the most integral part of its hardware would be, you guessed it, its ability to connect to the Internet. Like all existing Apple notebooks, our dream Apple netbook would include an Airport Extreme card with 802.11n technology and built-in Bluetooth. In addition to straight up Wi-Fi access, our Apple netbook would support 3G WAN connectivity as part of a partnership with a nationwide wireless provider.

In a dream world, provider would be one of the higher rated networks in terms of customer satisfaction, like current "Most Beloved" titleholder: Verizon. Unfortunately, however, if the Apple netbook hits before AT&T's exclusive contract ends for iPhone support in 2010, the device will likely fall to them.