Famed Apple leaker dishes on the art of iPhone rumors and the beauty of e-waste

Legendary rumormonger Sonny Dickson talks leaks, sustainability, and his new venture, Collectible Phones.

- BY DAVID PRICE

If you're interested in unreleased Apple products, you've probably read something by Sonny Dickson. He's one of the most widely known and frequently quoted figures in the mysterious world of tech leaks, with a long and distinguished track record of early (fave.co/4nb0p0F) and accurate (fave.co/4n7ldpQ) predictions (fave.co/4fVL3dS)... and, as is the case for all leakers, a few missteps too. Nobody's perfect.

Now the poacher is turning gamekeeper, and Dickson is launching his own line of tech products inspired by the artistic merits of obsolescent devices. (Perhaps it would be poetic justice if some of his future products were leaked in turn.) Macworld caught up with Dickson over email to discuss life as a leaker, sustainability, tech as art, and his plans for the future.

Macworld: When did you first become interested in technology?

Sonny Dickson: I've always been interested in technology. My first computer was a grape iMac, then later I purchased an iBook. I believe technology is art generated by scientists and engineers. Every awe-inspiring thing in the tech industry is its own masterpiece. Some may be better than others, but they are all moving our lives forward to new possibilities.

MW: What's your favorite tech product of all time?

SD: The first iPhone. It changed the whole direction of personal computing and gave everyone who owned one a real sense of living in the future.

MW: Which current tech product do you think will be regarded as art in 18 years?

SD: Glasses. And probably first-gen Al.

MW: What was your first big scoop as a leaker?