Melinda Gates and her husband, Bill Gates

Melinda Gates, wife of Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and cofounder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, sometimes wants an iPhone, but despite the temptation, neither she nor her kids can get one. Same goes with the iPod.

In an interview published by Vogue magazine, Mrs. Gates said, "There are very few things that are on the banned list in our household, but iPods and iPhones are two things we don't get for our kids." As for herself, she said, "Every now and then I look at my friends and say, 'Ooh, I wouldn't mind having that iPhone."

As an Apple-centric publication, it would be fairly easy to just write a hit and run article mocking her for these quotes, but the context of the interview with Vogue is probably worth far more than the angst of the world's wealthiest woman being denied something simply because it was made by her hubby's chief foe.

To wit: The quote about iPhones and iPods came in response to questions about how the Gates's raise their children.

"They go to parks, have playdates and sleep-overs," Mrs. Gates said, and Vogue described her as being "fierce" about this. She added, "There will be no bubble for them; these children will not turn out to be Paris Hilton."

The Gates's have also gone on record as saying their children would not inherit most of their wealth, and the two have already plowed enormous amounts of that wealth into their Foundation, which Mrs. Gates actively co-runs with her husband.

The full interview focuses mainly on that Foundation, the kind of work it does, and what motivates Mrs. Gates in pursuit of this work. Her goals, according to the interview, are merely solving world hunger and disease.

"We talk about eliminating AIDS and malaria," she said. "We know how hard that is going to be, but we are not daunted."

Perhaps an iPhone would help in this pursuit? It's likely she'll never know.