Second-Generation 3G iPhone Launch Date Set to June 9th

Citing “someone very, very close to the 3G iPhone launch,” Gizmodo website said the device will be announced the WWDC Keynote on June 9th and available for sale immediately, rather than toward the end of the year, as many industry observers have speculated.

“The second-generation iPhone will be available worldwide right after the launch, and not at year’s end, as previously thought.”

A 3G iPhone — one that offers a faster data connection so that web surfing and video streaming work better — has long been expected by industry observers, with many pegging the San Francisco conference as a logical launching point. Gizmodo also cited another unnamed sources saying that “the 3G iPhone will no longer be available at a fixed price point—at least in some countries, and its launch will also bring new sales policies, although these have not been completely specified yet.”

Apple is also set to add new e-mail capabilities to the second-generation 3G iPhone in June that will allow message to automatically be “pushed” to the device. The new capability will allow Apple to compete directly with Research In Motion’s BlackBerry, which counts push e-mail as the main reason for its success.

Spain’s largest cellphone carrier, Telefonica, will have the new iPhone for sale at the opening of its new flagship store in Madrid on June 18, Gizmodo said.