3G

Those of you that were avidly following the rumor lead up to the launch of the current version of Apple's iPhone probably remember that one of the major "tells" in regard to the then-coming launch of the iPhone was a leaked memo from AT&T which instructed AT&T retail sales employees that they were restricted from taking vacation during the period between June 15th and July 15th of 2007. As it turned out, release day for the original iPhone turned out to be smack in the middle of that period.

The last month or so has been one of the most prolific in regards to rumors surrounding the release of the 3G iPhone. The latest rumors indicate that testing of the 3G iPhone is already underway by the privileged few, and that the release of the next generation iPhone could be coming as early as June or July.

According to a recent post, Engadget has it "on authority" that the 3G iPhone is already in the hands of a few privileged beta testers and is undergoing trials for a possible release come July 2008. Previous rumors have suggested that the second generation iPhone is scheduled for a June 2008 release, so this falls roughly in line with previous indications.

Engadget's source, which they describe as "trusted," gave the low-down on some of the 3G iPhone's highlight features, which include

If we ever go 30 days without publishing a new "source" of information on the coming of the 3G iPhone, you'll know the 3G iPhone has been released. That said, despite the large volume of rumors that continue to surface on the topic, rarely do they warrant mention. The latest, out of Citigroup, just might.

According to Citigroup analyst Richard Gardner, several sources [have] confirmed the introduction of a new 3G iPhone" in the second quarter of this year. Gardner offered up this information in a research note published following recent meetings with Taiwanese electronics companies. One can reasonably assume then, that

Rumors are flying as a result of a blog post on TUAW this morning, which indicates that Apple may be planning a product release event sometime near the end of this month. Suggestions of what might be coming at the event are already buzzing about and include: the Official iPhone SDK, new MacBook Pro models which would utilize Intel's 45-nanometre Penryn chip, and the ever-rumored 3G-capable iPhone model.

The source of the rumor is a tip to TUAW that indicates that the company that does television for Macworld and other Apple media events is reportedly hiring personnel for an event at the end of