Back in 'the good old days', Apple had very tight control over their products and releases and rumors. I remember when I bought a Max IIcx, I asked several Apple people that I knew at the university that I was at if there was anything new coming out and was assured that no, there wasn't. I plunked down my bucks through the campus computer store to get the IIcx. Then I found out that model had 'dirty ROMs' and that an fix was planned because it had a ROM expansion/replacement slot to address the issue. Well, apparently someone at Apple decided that the release of a SIMM with genuine Apple ROM's would be inviting someone to copy them so they never released a fix, and just outside of the window for return/exchange Apple released the IIci! With 'clean ROMs' and a speed bump. No rumors, no hint of another model coming out, and the campus computer store couldn't/wouldn't do anything about the issue.
Yeah, back in 'the good old days'... I actually swore off Macs after that. Then the iMac with the 'popup' monitor came out. I waited until near the end of that model run and ordered one, and the order was 'delayed', then marked 'shipped' and was surprised to get the all-in-one iMac. I haven't looked back sense. I do miss my IIcx though, mainly for the size and the amazing appearance of the chassis. It was a pretty sexy system. (The bizarre CD drive was a stitch, looking back. It used a cartridge to hold the disc and had to be inserted into the tray. Comical compared to today's slot loading systems)
Has anyone been really surprised by the final release of any Apple product since possibly the original iPhone? Given the way they beat up the folks over the 'found' iPhone, Apple's 'security' sucks... But is it planned?