3G iPhone Schedule For 2008

Apple Inc. will introduce a version of the iPhone next year that can download from the Internet at a faster rate, AT&T Inc. Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson said.

The device will operate on third-generation wireless networks, Stephenson said today at a meeting of the Churchill Club in Santa Clara, California. San Antonio-based AT&T is the exclusive carrier for the iPhone in the U.S.

``You'll have it next year,'' Stephenson said in response to a question about when the 3G iPhone would debut. He said he didn't know how much more the new version will cost than the existing model, which sells for $399. Apple Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs ``will dictate what the price of the phone is,'' he said.

Jobs said in September that the iPhone's battery life would be too short if it supported faster networks. The handset has eight hours of battery life, and 3G chips are ``real power hogs,'' he said at a news conference in London.

``We've got to see the battery lives for 3G get back up into the five-plus-hour range,'' he said. ``Hopefully we'll see that late next year.''

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