Be Smart

If you've tried to purchase an iPhone in the last few weeks, you may have been met with futility. It's become increasingly difficult to procure an iPhone, and that can mean only one thing: the long-rumored and longed-for 3G (high speed data) iPhone is around the corner and Apple is doing nothing to calm the rumor mill.

What we know for sure:
The new iPhone will have 3G data capabilities, finally making the amazing Safari browser usable even when out of wifi range. Of course, the current EDGE-enabled iPhone lets you surf over the EDGE network, but it's so slow it's often unusable.

What we think we know:
The new iPhone likely will have real GPS, not just the cell tower locater which doesn't work very well at present. This mean the map function should have accurate turn-by-turn directions which continue to track you as you move.

The new model is likely to be very similar form-wise (no slide-out keyboard), but maybe a little bit lighter. It will very likely come in models with either 8 or 16 GB of storage with a big 32 GB model possible as well.

What we don't know:
The pricing of the iPhone is likely to remain similar to the first generation ($399 for 8GB, and $499) but no one seems to know if the first generation will stick around, at a lower price. I will go out on a limb and say that I think given the relative newness of the original iPhone, and the current state of the economy, there may be a surprise price cut as an incentive to upgrade right away.

There have been rumors of multiple colors on the new iPhone, perhaps white and silver.

There may or may not be an upgraded camera. Currently the iPhone doesn't support video or MMS (multimedia messaging, sending video or pictures via text) and it's been a notable flaw on such a media-intensive device.

Flash support for Safari. Nothing is more frustrating than going to a website on your iPhone and having it not load at all because it's entirely in Flash. After the 3G, this is what I've most wanted, and it's not clear yet if it'll be there.

What applications will be on the new iPhone. It seems that the OS will be the same, but there may or may not be additional applications, both by Apple, and by outside developers. Perhaps the ability to purchase more applications too.

Another thing we know (well kind of know):
The new iPhone will be offically announced next Monday, at the Apple Developer Conference (WWDC). This seems almost assured but it's not clear if the iPhone will be available immediately, or at a later date. I'm on pins and needles.

We'll keep you updated!