Well it turns out the rumours were true, and Apple will soon begin shipping its 2nd generation iPhone, dubbed the iPhone 3G, to Canadians (and residents of 21 other lucky countries) on July 11. You can almost sense the clouds gathering now so that when they part on launch day and the sun shines down upon the blessed mortals lined up around the block, rainbows and doves will fly forth and life will be good again. Uhh... right.

Here are the relevant details:

The Hardware
The biggest complaint about the original iPhone, besides it's lack of MMS and video-recording capabilities, was that it wasn't a 3G phone. This complaint mainly came from Europeans who actually had 3G networks deployed. Until recently, AT&T in the US only had the slower 2.5G EDGE network. The difference in speed can be over 2x faster using 3G (HSDPA) vs 2.5G (EDGE).

In addition, Apple has added a GPS receiver to the new units, meaning that next-generation Location Based Services (LBS) - as well as fun tricks like Geo-tagging of photos - will finally be possible. This is also a really helpful feature if you need to make a 911 emergency call and don't know where you are.

Other hardware improvements include better battery life, a non-recessed headphone jack, and a SIM-ejector tool (presumably so you can easily swap out SIM cards when travelling abroad to avoid exhorbitant roaming charges). Oh, and the back plate has been changed to glossy plastic, black for the 8GB model, with the 16GB version available in either black or Karim Rashid-friendly white.

One disapointment on the hardware side is that you still won't be able to record any video or send MMS messages. This oversight is generating a lot of negative feedback in the blogosphere. Considering Apple is known for video and content creation, this is almost absurd. More than that, it's really irritating. The camera is also a wussy 2.0 megapixels, unchanged from the original model. Not impressed.

The Software
Shortly after the original iPhone came out, crafty hackers went to work on "unlocking" it's operating system so that unofficial software could run on the device. Seeing the writing on the wall, Apple has spent the last 7+ months working on a robust SDK and storefront marketplace for "official" 3rd party applications (including games that take advantage of the iPhone's accelerometer for things like Wii-style tilt-steering). The iPhone App Store will be launching in July as well. This will allow iPhone users to purchase and download applications wirelessly, just like the iTunes store.

Another area where Apple wanted to make inroads was the Enterprise market. This is traditionally Blackberry/Windows Mobile territory, and it's worth a ton of cash. Well, the new software release takes the iPhone straight to the heartland of the Enterprise, catering to every demand of big-business customers.

The Carrier(s)
In Canada, as previously announced, Rogers is the lucky carrier, but by extension, so is Fido. Both are listed on the Apple Canada site as resellers. Rogers has been typically quiet about pricing and contract terms, providing no details on their website other than a banner showing an ominous obelisk-like silhouette with the ominous tagline "Something really big is coming July 11". Ooooo... I wonder what that could be.

The Price
Despite a complete lack of details from either of the Canadian carriers, the price for the new iPhones will apparently be the same in Canada as in the US: $199 for the 8GB model, and $299 for the 16GB model. If it's any indication of what we can expect, AT&T is requiring a 2-year contract with a $30/mo data plan, not including text messaging. Expect Rogers and Fido to come in even higher.

If you're still not convinced of its utter coolness, you should watch the creepy TV commercial.

So, do you want one now?