by , 8:10 PM EDT, July 19th, 2006

Apple is not "sitting around doing nothing," when it comes to cell phones, according to Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer. The comments came during Apple's Q3 conference call with analysts Wednesday.

Apple has maintained a very, very strict policy of not commenting on unannounced products to the press or with analysts since the return of Steve Jobs to the CEO helm in 1997, and the comments TMO noted from the conference call do not technically violate that policy. They do, however, offer a hint as to Apple's direction for the future of its iPod and digital music empire.

Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray asked the Apple execs on hand what the company thought of Sony's success with its Walkman Phone. Mr. Oppenheimer's repose mirrored what Steve Jobs has said in the past about cell phones making a poor music player, but took that idea a bit farther.

"Well, we are very confident in our ability to compete in the marketplace," said Mr. Oppenheimer. "And we're very excited about what we have in the product pipeline, and you know that I can't comment on that. As regards cell phones, we don't think that the phones that are available today make the best music players. We think the iPod is. But over time, that is likely to change. And we're not sitting around doing nothing."

Rumors of an Apple phone have been around on the Internet for many years, most recently centering around a supposed "iPhone." However, Apple has steadfastly insisted that it is not entering the cell phone market.

The markets have so far reacted positively to Apple's quarterly results, with the stock trading higher in extended hours at 58.83, up 6.07 (+11.50%).

*In the interest of full disclosure, the author holds a small share in AAPL stock that was not an influence in the creation of this article. �