In terms of rumours:
Microsoft withhold very little information from the public, so rumours are almost non-existent for the majority of their product lines.
In addition, Microsoft’s products are often announced well ahead of release, and – Windows Vista being a prime example – launch with fewer features than initially announced. Although Apple undoubtedly release products with a small number of features compared to the original plan, the public are not made aware of what the original plan was.
In Microsoft’s case, falling short of expectations means a degree of disappointment and a lack of demand for press coverage, and in speculation in particular, in the future. In Apple’s case, the public are surprised and are happy to speculate about future releases.
If you are looking for Microsoft coverage, you could check out:
- Digg’s Microsoft section at:
http://digg.com/microsoft
- The Microsoft Developer Network blogs:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/default.aspx
- Filter for articles on Engadget with the keyword Microsoft:
http://www.engadget.com/supersearch/?q=Microsoft&sort=date
- Check out some of Microsoft’s internal blogs:
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/109605.asp
Hope this helps.