Short version: When Steve Jobs went on leave of absence before Macworld, Apple said he would return end of June. Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, say Jobs will indeed return.

Longer version: After suffering a protein-digestion problem which rendered Steve Jobs unable to function on a day-to-day basis at Apple, he took time off and corrective measures. Periodic visits back to the HQ not withstanding, and speculation of a surprise cameo at WWDC running ever-rampant, Jobs is still on track to return just precisely when Apple first said he would.

New iPhone good to go:

Apple is ready enough with its latest iPhone to be in a position to unveil it next week, said a person who has seen the new model. The new phone will look similar to last year’s model but has more processing power and some new features like video editing, this person said.

Confirmation all around then, thanks familiar person!

[And digitalrio for the tip]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

WSJ: Steve Jobs Ready to Return to Apple Helm, New iPhone as Described.

Apple Insider, citing “sources” reveals that:

Carphone Warehouse, the largest independent European mobile phone retailer and an official iPhone reseller, added four placeholders to their inventory list for new iPhone models earlier today

Whether they officially know something we civilians do not, or they’re just getting assuming the same thing everyone else in the iVerse is — that Apple will announce next generation iPhones during the WWDC 2009 Keynote this Monday — remains unclear, but word is they’ve pushed back their next marketing efforts to July 7…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Carphone Warehouse Listing 16GB, 32GB Next Gen iPhones?

Yeah, BeeJive is totally teasing us now. Instant messaging (IM) is one of the most anticipated services when it comes to iPhone 3.0’s Push Notification service, and BeeJive aims to deliver and soon.

Best of all — (see screenshot, above) — they aim to deliver it free to all current customers. Maybe as soon as WWDC next week?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

BeeJive 3.0 with Push Notification Just in Time for WWDC?

Will we see next generation iPhone handware? Will Apple release iPhone 3.0 or just more features for iPhone 3.0? Will MobileMe 2.0 be good to go? Will we have to sit through 8 excruciatingly long app previews like the last 3 iPhone keynotes? Will Scott Forstall say “blow us away”? And Will Steve Jobs show up in some way, shape, or Mobile iChat form to give that perfect “Boom!” or “One more–” accent to the show?

Everything before has been rumor, speculation, and question. Monday at 1pm EDT/10am PDT we get answers.

Join TiPb for a live meta-blog of of the WWDC 2009 Keynote as it unfolds. We’ll have analysis, color commentary, and a chat room going so you can tell us what you think.

We’re heading into the home stretch folks. It’s two-years later, let’s go see those light-years ahead!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

WWDC 2009: TiPb Live Meta-Blog Monday, 1pm EDT/10am PDT

All signs are pointing to some new iPhone hardware come this Monday at WWDC. Even if the upgrades are all internal and minor such as memory, CPU, and storage bumps - the iPhone is poised to stay on the top of the hill regardless of what Palm, RIM, or HTC may bring to the table.

In a article posted on Wired.com, Roger Entner, an analyst at Nielsen Mobile had the following to say:

"I think the Pre holds up very well compared to the current second-generation iPhone 3G. But the third-gen iPhone will most likely up the ante again…. If you only follow Apple, you will never catch up."

Whether you like it or not, Apple has a firm hold in the consumer market. Back in July 2007, Apple introduced us to iPhone, that forever changed the smartphone market. In July 2008, Apple launched the App Store and once again altered the mobile landscape. Since then, many companies have tried to follow in Apple’s footsteps, only to fail.

We are curious to see what you, our readers, think about Apple’s competition. Can Apple be overthrown by the likes of RIM, Palm, or HTC? Or does Apple hold a death grip on the rest of the industry? It seems they can do no wrong no matter how small or large they update the iPhones hardware. With WWDC — and a next generation iPhone — only days away, is there anything Apple could do to seriously disappoint?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iPhone to Competitors: Can’t Touch This

Apple Insider has unearthed another very cool, who-knows-if-they’ll-ever-deploy-it, Apple patent pertaining to the iPhone. This one, credited to engineer Jeffrey Terlizzi pertains to media file sharing while already on a phone call:

“For example, the user may initiate a telephone call with his friend in order to ask the friend if she is familiar with a particular song,” Apple said. “Once the phone call has been established between the user and his friend, the user may select the song of interest from his communications device, and he may send the song to his friend over the same communication path used by the communications device to establish the communications operation, so that the two may continue their phone conversation while the song plays simultaneously.”

In addition to music, video, photos, voicemail, and podcasts are also mentioned, as are requests in the form of video conferencing (oh, hi, Mobile iChat!), and control over media playback during a call.

Forget 3.0, let the rumors for 3.1 and 4.0 begin! (Joking! A little…)

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Patent Watch: Apple Adding “Add Media” to iPhone Phone App?

In-between analyzing the Palm Pre to a near-quantum level, Dieter managed to squeeze in a little feature bump for TiPb as well. If you look down and to the right, you’ll see a brand-spanking new “tweet” button and handy-dandy counter.

Let’s face it, the iPhone and Twitter are the peanut butter and chocolate of the mobile age. They “just work” together. So, if you love the iPhone, and you’re hooked on Twitter, just hit that little button and help TiPb spread all the latest news, opinions, and reviews. Your tweeps will thank you. (And if you have no patience for buttons, no worries — the counter will register any bit.ly URL that leads back to TiPb, so RT and Via work great as well!)

Of course, you can also just follow us @theiphoneblog

Or our writers, who can’t help but to sometimes break stories first on Twitter (tsk!):

• Rene: @reneritchie
• Chad: @iChadman
• Jeremy: @BadAsh77

The best dang forum staff in the ‘verse:

• Matt: @msproductions
• Chris: @skeetobite
• James: @jamesus
• Leanna: @llofte

And our aforementioned editor-in-chief:

• Dieter: @backlon

Don’t hesitate to drop us tips, suggest help topics, or just engage in some conversation — that’s the point!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

@TheiPhoneblog: Now with Mo’ Better Twitter!

Poor iTunes 8.2, not even a week and its code has been sifted and (some of?) its secrets laid bare. Apple Insider reveals details including:

• radio capabilities along with a corresponding ability to tag songs so that they can later be purchased from the iTunes store
• additional string shows the ability to change VoiceOver settings to manage aspects of the Nike+ application

So, Nike+ like the iPod touch, VoiceOver like the iPod shuffle — looks like Apple isn’t only adding new features to the next gen iPhone, but leveraging features they’ve added to the rest of the line since the last gen iPhone. Good way for Apple to keep the iPhone “the best iPod we’ve ever made”, isn’t it?

[Thanks daveizzle for the tip!]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iTunes 8.2 Contains Next Gen iPhone Strings for VoiceOver, Nike+, Radio Tagging

The grand old uncle of technology reviewers, Walter Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal loves him some iPhone. Indeed, ever since Apple’s little pocket universe-denter came out in 2007, it seems Mossberg can’t review another, similar device without mentioning the iPhone as much as the subject du jour.

As I mentioned last night on Twitter, however, with his Palm Pre review for D All Things Digital, Mossberg went a step further. Alongside roughly 40 or so iPhone references — including the title! — Mossberg interjects:

• I'd note that the new iPhone to be unveiled next week will have lots of added features
• Apple has both a new iPhone operating system and new iPhone hardware coming, likely available within a month
• I expect to see an iPhone with up to 32 gigabytes of memory, video recording, a higher-resolution camera, a compass, and greater operating speed. Plus, there are persistent rumors that Apple will announce at least one iPhone at a drastically lower price than $199.

And in the video he goes on to say that, at WWDC:

• There will be changes to the iPhone, not all of which are known

That’s a lot of iPhone info (Engadget thinks so as well). Our question remains:

Is Mossberg guessing, leaking, or was his Palm Pre video clip shot on a next generation iPhone?!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Mossberg: Palm Pre Review or iPhone News Leak?

Italian site iSpazio has posted up a couple images they received from tipster who claimed they’re shots from Apple’s development web server showing off pages that feature the next-generation iPhone (presumably what will go up post-WWDC keynote).

Of note, they highlight the Voice Memos app from iPhone 3.0 and — wait for it — a front facing camera, presumably for the oft-rumored Mobile iChat. As always, there’s no way to tell if these are real or fake.

The second image (after the jump), which features tethering, however, perplexingly shows off the iPhone 2.x, NOT 3.0 home screen layout. Roh-roh Raggy. That one has us immediately calling shenanigans…

All in favor?

[Via CultOfMac, thanks to Jeffdc5!]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Real or Fake? Another Next-Gen iPhone “Leak” Hits the Web!