Your infinite fascination for all things Apple matches mine.

Alas, your time is finite.

So which Apple blog should you spend more time on for the latest news, reviews and how-tos of Macs, iPhones and iPads.

To gauge the popularity of the major Apple blogs, I took a dekko at Alexa rankings (not perfect but all we have) and then added my own observations.

BTW, did you know most tech blogs including dedicated Apple news sites get a good chunk of visitors from my two favorites – U.S. and India. This is not surprising considering Apple and most startups are based in the U.S.

When it comes to India, the huge number of visitors to tech blogs owes to the strong IT outsourcing industry and relentless breeding that has produced a litter of several hundred million restless youngsters with too much time on their hands.

Apple Blog Winners

If you go by Alexa ranking and the voluminous number and quality of user comments on the site, Macrumors is hands down the must-visit blog for your daily Apple fix.

Macrumors has a superb comments/forum section and when they’re behind on exclusive news the site atones for it by rehashing stories from other sources.

For How-Tos, OSXDaily is the clear winner. They just can’t be beat on all kinds of how-tos for Macs as well as mobile devices like iPad tablets and iPhones.

If you’re hankering for exclusive news, 9to5Mac is the blog to bookmark and read. These guys are cited in Wall Street Journal, New York Times and other tech blogs.

But my major complaint against all Apple blogs is that coverage of Steve Jobs, Apple and its products is for the most part uncritical and bordering on hagiography.

Except for rare instances like antennagate or bendgate where every media site piles on, Apple tends to get adulatory coverage in hushed tones.

Every Apple story has the breathless air of a vaccine discovery for Ebola or AIDS being reported for the first time. 🙁

I refuse to believe that Apple is run by saints who do nothing wrong. The problem is that both bloggers and mainstream media reporters have failed to cultivate strong sources at Apple who are dumb enough to leak critical stories.

Now for a quick look at the pros and cons of the major Apple blogs and news sites:

Winners

Macrumors

Pros
Covers all things small & large at Apple. Includes pictures of planes leaving China with iPhones with weight of cargo. No kidding.
Excellent forum/comments covering all facets of Apple
Cons
Few exclusive stories
Generally uncritical coverage
http://www.macrumors.com

9to5Mac

Pros
Exclusive stories, breadth of coverage
Cons
Weak on forums/comments and analysis. Pitiful on how-tos
Generally uncritical coverage
http://9to5mac.com

OSXDaily

Pros
Unbeatable for how-tos for Mac, iPhone and iPad
Cons
Weak on news and reviews
http://www.osxdaily.com

And the Others

MacWorld

Pros
Reviews of Apple products, accessories and apps
Cons
Declining number of news stories and generally uncritical coverage
Weak comments/forums and how-tos
http://www.macworld.com

AppleInsider

Pros
Comprehensive coverage
Good source for deals and discounts
Cons
Seems too pro-Apple
Comments quality not in Macrumors class, poor how-tos
http://appleinsider.com

TUAW

Pros
Product stories, apps, links to Apple stories on other blogs
Cons
Few exclusives, weak on comments/forums and few how-tos
http://www.tuaw.com

iMore

Pros
Plenty of stories plus reviews of major Apple products
Cons
Stories miss key details, too much hyperbole, mostly uncritical coverage
Not enough exclusives, weak comments/forum and how-tos
http://www.imore.com

Cult of Mac

Pros
Lot of stories
Cons
Stories miss important details, few reviews, fewer exclusives, weak on comments, forums and how-tos
http://www.cultofmac.com

Techcrunch

Pros
Unbeatable for breadth of tech sector coverage
Solid exclusives on funding
Cons
Covers only ‘big’ Apple stories
Weak forums/comment section
Cheerleaders for tech sector
http://www.techcrunch.com

ArsTechnica

Pros
In-depth stories and Apple hardware and software reviews
Cons
Rare breaking stories on Apple; Limited Apple coverage
http://www.arstechnica.com

The Verge

Pros
Analysis and reviews of Apple products
Cons
Not focused on Apple
Mostly uncritical coverage of tech sector
http://www.theverge.com

Re/Code.net

Pros
Occasional exclusives
Cons
Apple coverage not strong, unimpressive analysis
Weak comments and non-existent how-tos
http://www.recode.net

  iMac