News: Apple's tax avoidance, 100 Thunderbolt devices, the road to OS Xi, and more!

There's a fantastic piece from the New York Times on how Apple sidesteps billions in taxes, by taking advantage of a few laws in the US. Make no mistake, all of the methods Apple uses to avoid millions in tax each year are completely legal, and if nothing else, the Times article gives a fascinating insight into how the US tax system works. Not to mention, this happens all over the world — in countries like Ireland and the Netherlands. Intel are aiming to have over 100 Thunderbolt devices available by the end of the year. Intel corporate vice president general manager of Intel's PC Client Group Kirk Skaugen has said at an event in San Francisco. Skaugen also mentioned that just 21 Thunderbolt devices are currently available in terms of storage and display peripherals, with hundreds of Thunderbolt devices targeted by the middle or end of next years.

TUAW's Erica Sadun has an eye-opening post on the future of OS X and iOS. Apple has been pushing their "back to the Mac" scheme for a little while now, and there's only really one way for it to end: with the inevitable culmination of both iOS and OS X merging into the one operating system, sharing many of the same features.

Forrester has an article comparing Apple to Sony, where they draw comparisons between the two companies. They make the point that Apple will coast for a few years in their post-Jobs era, just like Sony did — and then decline, just like Sony did.