Seriously. I mean, they’re the largest software company in the world, their operating system still runs the majority of the world’s personal computers, but every time they’re in the news lately, it’s an embarrassment. Let’s start the list with Zune. The iPod killer. The machine that was going to walk into the digital audio market and show that, once again, there was nothing Apple could possess that Microsoft could not take away.

Droid, a new phone emerging in the mobile marketplace through a cooperative effort with Verizon and Motorola, is turning out to cause quite a ruckus as the first true iPhone competitor. At least that’s what the companies are trying to get at through their clever new commercial that flat out attacks the weak points of Apple’s iPhone. The ad, which is 30 seconds in length, starts off with an Apple-esque song and black text that drops down on a white background reading “iDon’t run widgets,” “iDon’t allow open development,” and “iDon’t have a real keyboard,” and such.

Today, I read an interesting article on MrGadget about why Apple needs to release the next generation of the iPhone soon. If they don’t, apparently Palm is going to break the deathgrip that Apple has on its growing portion of the cell phone market today. Needless to say, I wholeheartedly disagree (even though I want to see another iPhone just as much as the next Apple fanboy), and here are my reasons why.

With the Mobile World Congress currently taking place, it’s safe to say that there are going to be some big releases; some amazing devices. Take the Palm Pre, shown back at CES, for example. It’s possible it may be released at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona. But the question I have, is will any of these devices be an iPhone killer? Will something take Apple off the top spot?

The Palm Pre has yet to be released, and there is already tons of talk about Apple, Palm, intellectual property (IP), and all the other goodies that come along with introducing new products that could be considered similar to others. You probably remember Tim Cook’s statement earlier this week on their conference call about their IP and competition (or shall I say, about the Pre, specifically). On top of that news, there are a couple comments from Palm spokeswoman Lynn Fox to take into consideration.

Enter the Pre (pre what? you might ask). The Palm Pre. Palm’s newest smartphone, just announced today at CES, is slated to be the next iPhone killer: a smartphone that does all the same things the iPhone does, and then some. It features a multi-touch screen, but unlike the iPhone also comes with a physical slide-out QWERTY keyboard. And MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) capability, which gives you the ability to send video and picture messages. For a full comparison, see Harry McCracken’s excellent side-by-side T-Grid over at Technologizer.

Yes, the iPhone is a combination music and video player, a mobile platform for e-mail and the web, and, of course, a phone. But what if you want all that, and more? How about if you want a phone that will project in HD, translate any language, shave you and make a mean cup of more »

PC World has put the iPhone and the new Blackberry Storm in a cage match to determine which is the best mobile phone/mobile web platform. The winner? Well, like Godzilla vs. King Kong, it depends on which version you see*.

Because, in the end, PC World wusses out and prints two different articles, both of which list eight reasons why either the Storm or the iPhone trounces the other. In all honesty, though, the pro-Storm article is kinda lame because it was written just as the Storm was coming out, and they’re basing their assumptions on what the Storm will probably be like based on other Blackberry devices.