Apple iPhone 3G available free from O2

The iPhone 3G will be available in 8GB and 16GB versions and will again be sold through O2 in the UK - but for the first time, it will be offered free to high-value contract customers

Apple has taken the wraps off its iPhone 3G, bringing integrated GPS mapping and high-speed HSDPA to the must-have mobile - and it's available from free

Apple's hugely anticipated iPhone 3G has at last been unveiled - and will be available from free in the UK when it goes on sale on July 11.

The new Apple iPhone has been significantly upgraded from its first generation model, featuring high-speed HSDPA 3G technology that's twice as fast browsing as its EDGE-speed predecessor, and has integrated GPS satellite navigation technology - but is significantly cheaper than the original model on all contract deals.

The iPhone 3G will be available in 8GB and 16GB versions and will again be sold through O2 in the UK - but for the first time, it will be offered free to high-value contract customers, and at a range of price points too.

The 8GB iPhone 3G model will be available from free on contracts costing £45 or £75 per month, or from £99 on a new £30 a month or existing £35 a month tariff.
The 16GB iPhone 3G will be free on the £75 per month tariff, £59 on the £45 a month deal, and £159 on the £30 and £35 a month offerings.

In another new pricing move, the iPhone 3G will also be available for O2 Pay As You Go customers, with prices still to be confirmed.

The significantly reduced contract deal prices - half the cost of the original iPhone at launch a year ago on entry-level tariffs - are bound to outrage many early adopters of the iPhone, and even some recent 2G iPhone buyers in the UK who snapped up the 8GB device at a 'promotional' £169 price tag. O2 in the UK has said, however, that it is offering an upgrade deal for existing iPhone customers via www.o2.co.uk/iPhone.

The Apple iPhone 3G features new iPhone 2.0 software, which has support out of the box for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync corporate push email and remote synchronisation solutions, and hundreds of newly created third party iPhone applications which are available via Apple's new App Store. The device supports quad-band GSM and EDGE, as well as tri-band 3G HSDPA and Wi-Fi for data connectivity, enabling high-speed web browsing on mobile networks and via Wi-Fi hotspots.

The Apple iPhone 3G has a newly tweaked design, featuring a black plastic back cover rather than the brushed metal of the original, but still includes the Multi-Touch touchscreen user interface, a 3.5-inch 480x320 pixel screen, accelerometer and animation technology. The App Store allows users to download wirelessly a wide variety of native applications to customise the phone. Some apps are available free, while the App Store provides updates on when new apps are available.

The iPhone 2.0 software update includes GPS real-time satellite mapping and tracking, and includes mass move and deletion of emails, search for contacts, a new scientific calculator, parental control restrictions for specified content, and the ability to save images from a web page. Users can sync up content from the iPhone 3G easily with a Mac or PC. Apple's MobileMe internet service, offering push email and remote calendar and contacts synchronisation, is also supported automatically on the iPhone 3G.

The iPhone 3G doesn't support face-to-face video calling but does have a main 2.0 megapixel camera on the back panel. Picures can be geo-tagged with location information, thanks to the onboard A-GPS technology.

The battery life issues which Steve Jobs suggested had delayed 3G implementation in the original iPhone have obviously now been resolved; Apple claims the iPhone 3G will give talktime of up to 10 hours on GSM networks or 5 hours on 3G, with up to 5-6 hours of high-speed web-browsing, up to 7 hours of video playback, and up to 24 hours of audio playback. Overall dimensions are similar to the original iPhone at 115.5(h)x 62.1(w) x 12.3(d)mm and it weighs 133g.

The Apple iPhone 3G is initially being launched in 22 countries, including the UK, on July 11, with availability in more than 70 countries scheduled by the end of the year. The iPhone 3G will be on sale in the UK through O2, The Carphone Warehouse and Apple stores.