What, if anything, does Apple have planned for September?

Here we go again. The grapevine's a-hummin' following reports that Apple has an event slated for the week of September 7. Historically, September is Apple's month for music and iPods, but might there be a tablet-sized surprise, not to mention the long-awaited return of Steve Jobs?

The buzz started early Thursday with this report from AllThingsDigital, which claims that "multiple music-industry sources" are saying that Apple is prepping "one of its famed keynote events" for the second week in September.

That's still unconfirmed by Apple, which typically waits to send out event invites until just a few days before; that said, Apple has hosted September keynotes for the past two years running—one for the original iPod Touch, and last year for the skinnier, accelerometer-packing iPod Nano—so it seems plausible that we'll have another, music-focused Apple event for this September.

OK, so what'll we see at the event? AllThingsDigital is a bit light on details, although it predicts that it'll "incorporate music in some way," seeing as "Apple has topped of music industry executives" about the rumored shindig.

One of the possibilities, of course, is that Apple will unveil "Cocktail," the widely rumored "interactive" digital record album format that would include photos, liner notes, video clips, and other elements. (Yawn.)

Another possibility: New, camera-packing iPods, including a refreshed iPod Touch with both a camera and a microphone (good for making Skype calls via Wi-Fi). Rumors about iPods with cameras have been floating around for months now, peaking over the summer. A 64GB version of the iPod Touch would also be a welcome development.

And what of the hotly anticipated iTablet? The Mac tablet rumors have been all over the map in recent weeks, most recently with Gizmodo's Brian Lam recounting a phone call from a secretive Apple "insider" claiming that a 10-inch touchscreen tablet might be ready for the holidays.

But the reliable John Gruber at Daring Fireball poured a bucked of cold water on Lam's report, writing that he's "almost certain there's no tablet coming this year … it's a 2010 thing." Indeed, the prevailing wisdom seems to be that we definitely won't see the iTablet—assuming it even exists—at next month's (rumored) event.

Finally, what of the reclusive Steve Jobs, freshly returned from his six-month medical leave? Well, if Apple does hold an event in September, I'd be pretty surprised in Jobs didn't at last return to the spotlight. While the Apple CEO has still been looking a bit thin in recent photos, his absence from yet another Apple keynote would raise more unwanted questions for Cupertino. But that's just a guess on my part.

So, what do you think—if Apple really is holding an event next month, what would you like to see? New iPods? This "Cocktail" thing? The iTablet?

Related:
Here It Comes. But What Is It, Exactly? Apple Plans Keynote Event for September. [AllThingsDigital]