By Scott Moritz, TheStreet

 

Apple (AAPL) chief executive Steve Jobs kicked off Thursday's iPhone show with a few round numbers: 450,000 iPads sold, 600,000 iBooks downloaded and 4 billion applications downloaded to date.

 

On Monday, Apple it sold 300,000 iPads on the first day they hit the market. The company has sold 150,000 more iPads since. The iPad sales numbers, while solid, fall short of some of the most aggressive forecasts for the new device.

 

According to bloggers covering the event, Jobs emphasized the joy the device seems to bring people who buy it, flashing pictures of a girl gleefully opening an iPad box.

Tech watchers and investors have been waiting for more details about the new iPhone operating system, OS 4.0, and signs of the next version of the iPhone, which has accompanied the three previous operating system upgrades.

 

Bing: More on iPhone OS 4.0

 

The new iPhone OS 4.0 will offer enhanced multitasking capabilities, Jobs says. Prior versions of the software didn’t allow multiple applications to run at the same time similar to how people use their computers.

 

Going into the show at Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters, tech fans have wondered when and where the fourth version of the iPhone will land.

 

With the three year exclusivity agreement at AT&T (T) expected to expire soon, there has been some speculation about whether a CDMA version or Verizon (VZ) iPhone was in the works. But in recent weeks, the likelihood of a Verizon iPhone has diminished as Verizon and Apple appear unwilling or unable to strike a deal.

 

Apple shares are up 13% this year, outperforming the 0.4% gain of the S&P 500 Technology Index.

 

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