Last week, Gray Powell went to a bar to celebrate his birthday. When he left the bar, he left his phone. Normally that would just be a sad story, typical of the digital age. The phone Gray left, however, was not just any phone.

It was the next generation iPhone that Gray left sitting on a barstool in the Gourmet Haus Staudt.

Oops!

Apple is more secretive about its upcoming products than the CIA. I don’t blame them.

First, there are probably lots of products Apple works on that never see the light of day. Second, there is a problem — a big problem — when a high-tech company lets consumers know what it’s up to.

Say “Hello” to the Osborne II computer:

Before the Osborne II computer came out, its predecessor was one of the hottest-selling computers of its day. The Osborne (as it was known; no “one” in the name) as an all-in-one CP/M computer that retailed for $1200. That included monitor, keyboard, and a software suite, all crammed into one portable case.

Okay, it was portable in the same way that an elephant would be portable if he had a handle on his back.

The Osborne was hot. It flew off the shelves. It sold well every day until the company pre-announced the Osborne II. Then sales went flat. Who wanted to buy the old and out-dated Osborne I when the hot, sweet, much better Osborne II would be available in just a few months?

The Osborne company barely survived. Because sales stopped, income stopped. No one wanted an Osborne I. The Osborne II barely made it out the door, and by then Osborne had lost many of its customers to Compaq and its new PC clone.

The moral of the story: Never pre-announce high tech gear. Hardware or software, just don’t say anything!

Apple doesn’t seem to have a problem selling iPhones. People want them. But now that everyone is pretty sure what the next iPhone will be, why buy an existing iPhone 3GS when you can just wait a few months and get the newer, sweeter iPhone 4?

Will the leaked product hurt Apple’s sales? Perhaps. The issue with Apple is that they can’t really keep a secret. Everyone knows that a new iPhone is due out in June or so. It’s tradition! There will be another new iPhone due out in the summer of 2011.

There! I’m clairvoyant!

There will also be new iPods, new iMacs, and other new products. No secret there, but the details and dates are always secret. After all, no company wants to fall to the fate of Osborne.