A Bank of America analyst is predicting that the 3G iPhone will be a reality by the summer, according to reports. In a research note issued last Friday, B of A’s Scott Craig said that he is also forecasting that Apple will produce as many as 8 million of the 3G iPhones in the third quarter. Apple’s current iPhone model operates on AT&T’s 2.5G network, and many analysts have speculated that a faster version was in the works for this year. “Our latest channel checks point to a significant production build of a 3G iPhone beginning in the month of June after an initial small build in May,” Craig said, according to Reuters. That small build predicts will be about 3 million 3G iPhones, to be followed by the 8 million later in the year.
Analysts have speculated that Apple would bring the faster iPhone to market around the time of its World Wide Developer Conference, scheduled for June 9 ” 13, in San Francisco. Updated iPhone software, v 2.0, which brings new features and compatibility with Microsoft’s Exchange email platform, is expected in June, along with the final version of its software development kit (SDK). Apple released the second beta of the SDK last week. In its most recent earnings call with analysts, Apple said it expects to sell 10 million iPhones in 2008, which some analysts speculated was an optimistic number.
Update : Now we have an image of the supposedly 3G iPhone as well. If the image is what it claims then the new iPhone will also sport a glossy black back, replacing the satin nickel look found on the current model. Apparently Apple is very good at keeping things under wraps so i believe that this is just a mock up dummy phone.
Update : 27-04-08 - The 3G iPhone will be announced June 9, the likely date of Apple CEO Steve Jobs’ keynote at the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference, analysts said in research notes on Thursday. The 3G iPhone will be the “first of an impressive wave of new products” from Apple, wrote Citi analysts Richard Gardner and Yeechang Lee. They also expect an updated Mac laptop and iPod lines. The Apple conference is scheduled for June 9-13 in San Francisco. In addition to a 3G iPhone release in early June, the 2.5G model could have a “minor casing change” and a price drop to between US$299 and $349, compared to the current $399, wrote Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research, in a research report.
Those predictions are consistent with a February prediction Gardner made that 3G iPhones will be announced by midyear. The 3G iPhone release will help Apple meet its target of shipping 10 million iPhones in 2008, Gardner wrote at the time. Apple is confident it will sell 10 million iPhones this year, officials said during a conference call on Wednesday to discuss the company’s second-quarter earnings. Apple sold more iPhones than expected during the quarter and iPhone inventories were not enough to meet the strong demand.
Updated 09/06/08 Apple Announces iPhone 3G
