Apple received more good news from Wall Street, ahead of its expected Oct. 18 quarterly financial report. J.P. Morgan Thursday raised its revenue estimate for the fourth quarter to $18.71 billion, up from $18.13 billion. Despite Apple’s overwhelming success with the iPhone and iPad, the Cupertino, Calif. company has”plenty of growth” left, analyst Mark Moskowitz assured investors.

Indeed, Apple could earn $81.53 billion for fiscal 2011, up from Moskowitz’ previously estimated $78.84 billion. The increasing talk of a CDMA iPhone could add up to $2 per share next year, he estimated. The analyst expects Apple will introduce a CDMA iPhone for Verizon in early 2011 with a version aimed at China by mid-2011.

SAN FRANCISCO: Google is not to be underestimated, but sitting here watching a demo of the first Google TV, I’m not sure it has mainstream appeal.

Built by Logitech and running Google’s Android software, the Logitech Revue Google TV has definite geek appeal. It does everything: the $299 box connects to satellite and cable TV, compatible DVRs and Web video, as well as other online multimedia. You can search for content using your voice and control it with a smartphone. It has apps, HD videoconferencing, and functions as a universal Harmony remote, controlling all your home theater devices. (For a detailed breakdown of how it compares to Apple TV, see here)

But there’s no way my mother will go for it.

Apple is known for its tight control of the message, so the announcement that Apple will release its fourth-quarter financial results has the media in high anticipation. With a company threatening to knock energy giant Exxon off the S&P 500 leaderboard, potential questions are not hard to find.

The iPad is heralded as the “fastest selling electronic device in history” and the Cupertino, Calif. company sold 100,000 iPhone 4s in the first four days in China. Little wonder then that analysts like BMO Capital’s Keith Bachman keeps raising forecasts for the September quarter. Wednesday, Bachman forecast 11.5 million handsets were sold in September, up from his previously-expected 10.4 million. However, that increase may be too tepid. Apple could sell more than 12 million iPhones in the three-month period, the analyst suggests.

Although Apple had little to say in the midst of the so-called ‘Antennagate‘ hoopla, the frenzy of reports of signal trouble and the company’s response will likely be a subject when the firm’s executives face the media. How much did the problem hurt Apple?

Could Apple displace Exxon on the top of the Standard and Poor’s 500? That’s the opinion of one analyst who believes the Cupertino, Calif. company may overtake history’s largest corporation in terms of market capitalization as soon as October 18, when it reports earnings.

Unless Exxon shares rise, Apple will likely gain 12 percent to make up the $60 billion difference, according to Brian Marshall, analyst with Gleacher & Company. The move will mark only the second time a tech company takes first place on the S&P 500. Microsoft, which briefly held the top spot in the 1990s before falling to second place on the S&P, was overtaken by Apple in May.

Back in May, Apple passed Microsoft as the most valuable technology company in the world based upon market capitalization, but the lead was slim, putting Microsoft just $2.94 billion down of Apple’s $222.12 billion. What’s the race look like now?

Well, here’s a hint: since May, Apple has released a new AppleTV, iPhone and iPod Touch while Microsoft has released… nothing. No surprise then that Apple’s now increased its lead over Microsoft to an astonishing $49.53 billion. Apple is now worth $263.75 billion… making it only $52.47 billion shy of displacing Exxon as the most valuable American company.

Curiously, there’s one number that Apple is behind on: patents. In the past eight years, Apple has secured only 1,033 patents, while Microsoft has gone on the offensive, racking up over 8,000 in five years alone. Even Dell has more patents than Apple. If only number of patents alone was an accurate measure of innovation, Dell stock would be a good investment right now.

Wall Street analysts have been at it again attempting to prognosticate upcoming Apple products. It’s Goldman Sachs’ turn at the crystal ball – with a little help from those chatty “supply chain” folks. Goldman believes the Cupertino, Calif. company will launch a second version of its popular iPad with a 9.7-inch screen, a camera and mini USB connection.

This report shares some of the same qualities of a DigiTimes post published Sept. 17. Both agree the new iPad will advance Apple’s plans to offer Facetime videochat on every iOS family-member. Oh, that 7-inch iPhone 4 look-alike version one Chinese publication claimed was “finished” has “yet to be finalized,” according to Goldman analysts Henry King and Kevin Lu.

More signs appear every day that Apple is prepping a CDMA version of its popular iPhone for early 2011. The Cupertino, Calif. company reportedly has told suppliers it wants the first 3 million CDMA-only handsets ready for December 2010. The addition of a CDMA version alongside the current GSM-only iPhone should push fourth-quarter iPhone production to between 21 million and 22 million Apple handsets, one analyst told investors.

Citing overseas suppliers, Susquehanna Financial Group analyst Jeffrey Fidarco said shipments of GSM-only iPhones will be betweem 18.2 million and 18.4 million for the September quarter, a figure he described as “well above investor expectations.” Additionally, the analyst forecasts Apple will sell 11.6 million iPhones for the fourth-quarter of fiscal 2010, a 39 percent jump from the 8.4 million Apple sold in the third quarter. The recent launch of iPhone sales in China, along with Apple’s goal to launch the iPhone 4 in 88 countries by the end of September will aid results in in the fourth-quarter, the analyst told investors.

Ever since Apple CEO Steve Jobs casually mentioned the idea that Apple’s new iPod nano could be used as a wristwatch, well, I’ve wanted one. And so have a lot of people. A nano wristwatch aftermarket has quickly emerged to satisfy demand. But what about Apple?

Cnet’s Gordon Haff wrote a blog post this morning called “Why Apple will do a real iWatch” in which he predicts that Apple will get into the wristwatch business.

I say they won’t, and I’ll tell you why. But first let’s look at Haff’s reasoning.

A little over two months ago, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev toured Silicon Valley, making a stop at Apple headquarters in Cupertino where Steve Jobs gave the Mac-happy leader an iPhone 4.

Some CoM readers wrote in to ask us what we thought the visit would mean for Russia and the future of tech there.

We might have an answer: on Monday, Sergei Chemezov, the head of a state- run holding company Russian Technologies State Corp. showed off a prototype of the country’s first domestically-manufactured 4G smartphone.

Chemezov and Medvedev met to discuss tech advances taking place the country, including broadband internet and digital TV and creating a Linux-based national software program.

The 4G phone is expected to launch next year under the Yota brand, which already makes a portable wi-fi “egg” that looks vaguely Apple-inspired in its design.

But from the transcript from the Kremlin translated by the Wall Street Journal, it sounds like they may need to take that iCopycat design back to the drawing board, or borrow the president’s iPhone for tips:

Medvedev (holding handset): Not even sure where to press …
Chemezov: It’s still a prototype.
Medvedev: But this is entirely our [Russian-made] product, which will be produced in our factories?
Chemezov: For the time being, unfortunately, we only make it in Taiwan. But soon we’ll completely switch over to production in Russia.

We’ll be curious to see how the final design of the phone, which reportedly has two screens, may be Apple inspired.

Talk of iPad shortages may be history if reports of Apple’s new marching orders for suppliers are true. Apple CEO Steve Jobs, after doubling iPads built to 2 million, recently ordered 3 million iPads for the fourth quarter of 2010, according to one analyst.

The figure puts Apple on track to ship 36 million iPads in calendar year 20111, just shy of the 40 million iPads expected to be purchased next year, according to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty.