Apple Set to Announce iPad 2, but Will Steve Jobs Be in the House?

The iPad 2, Apple's first revamp of its groundbreaking tablet, will reportedly be released Wednesday. That's triggered the usual rumors about device specs and upgrades -- but with this product launch, there's a fresh mystery: Will Steve Jobs be present for the unveiling?

In mid-January, Jobs announced his third medical leave from Apple, putting Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook in charge of the company during his absence.

Exactly one month later, the National Enquirer renewed concerns about Jobs' health with an unconfirmed report that the Apple CEO had just weeks to live. The rumor arose after Jobs, who previously battled pancreatic cancer, was reportedly spotted at the Stanford Cancer Center in Palo Alto, Calif.

But Jobs made a high-profile appearance that week, attending a dinner with President Barack Obama and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg.

All Things Digital hears that Jobs is thinking about appearing at the iPad 2 launch Wednesday and wonders if his health will overshadow the technology:

[T]he possibility -- which would be a big sensation at the San Francisco gathering and has been subject to great speculation -- is also just as definitely not confirmed as yet, stressed sources. ...

If he decides to make another outing tomorrow, it is certainly with the knowledge that everyone will be trying to figure out his health from a stage appearance. ...

Given how innovative most of those products are, what would be a welcome change in the coverage of Jobs' personal struggles would be to show a level of respect to him by paying more attention to what bells and whistles the iPad 2 has rather than to how his jeans are fitting.

MacRumors picked up a similar tip from an Italian website called setteB.IT, which writes that it has "reassuring information" and believes "that the new iPad will debut in the hands of Steve Jobs." But MacRumors' Eric Slivka isn't so sure:

[W]e have a hard time believing that Jobs will distract from the focus on the iPad and other potential announcements by stepping out of his indefinite medical leave of absence to be on hand.

Doug Aamoth at Time's Techland blog thinks it would be a huge distraction and a "bad, bad, bad idea" for Jobs to show up:

Steve Jobs at the Apple announcement tomorrow would be like showing up at your dog sitter's house right in the middle of your vacation, saying hi to your dog without petting it, and then heading back to the airport. The dog would go nuts. Same basic story if you have little kids instead of animals.

Bad, bad, bad idea.

We'll know soon enough about Jobs' decision (and the iPad 2, of course). In the meantime, here's a nice tribute: TUAW reports that the new Mac OS X Lion includes an organizer section called All My Files. Its icon is a drawer full of folders, each of which displays a quote from Steve Jobs or a popular Apple company saying.

Follow Surge Desk on Twitter.