The iPhone is in the news again…so to speak, it never actually left…but this time, we might get closer to a new announcement: the 3G iPhone era is on its way! Why? Two elements come to answer our dilemma: first of all, the iPhone is sold out! And here’s where the second element comes in: if it’s sold out, why would Apple close new deals and engage to bring the iPhone to more markets, including Asia and Australia? They wouldn’t want some disappointed customers, would they?

Rumors have it that Apple prepares to unveil two versions of the 3G iPhone, the 8GB and the 16GB models, and this June could be the perfect time to release them, at least considering the developers conference that is set to take place around that time. Of course, as always, Apple isn’t very chatty about their plans, and they stick to the same old habit: no news till it’s good news!

Patience! They must be up to something, that’s for sure! Apple, and consequently iPhone fans, have been asking for more for some time now… and talks of Apple working on a new set of iPhones also started to emerge. The conclusion: the new iPhone would better have 3G, otherwise they will have some explaining to do to some very disappointed fans!

Earlier this week, the company unveiled that the iPhone is no longer available on its online stores in U.K. and U.S., without giving any insight on whether it plans to restock…another reason to believe that they have something “in store” for us.

At the end of last month, U.K. carrier O2 managed to empty its iPhone inventory by slashing the prices, from £269 to £169…and that was one good marketing strategy! The sales went through the roof, the model became no longer available and O2 said it had no plans of renewing the stock.

So it must be the 3G! If we think of it, how badly does Apple need this release? Pretty bad, if they want to reach the 10 million units sold (a 3G model would do that). And that’s not all: the competition gets tougher, as RIM and Palm are always working on some smarter, faster, over-the-top smartphone. Just this week, Blackberry’s Bold model pushed RIM’s shares to an all-time high.

Apple is currently expanding its market all over the world, and over the past months, it went on from an exclusive deal with one carrier to deals with European carriers, who brought the iPhone in U.K., Germany and France in November 2007, and to Ireland and Australia in March 2008.

Other deals are on the way, as Vodafone revealed its agreement with Apple to introduce the iPhone to ten more markets: Australia, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Italy, India, Portugal, New Zealand, South Africa and Turkey. Earlier this week, other carriers (SingTel, Bharti Airtel, Globe and Optus) also engaged to bringing the iPhone to Singapore, India, Philippines and Australia.

What other explanation for all this “iPhone all over the world” movement is there? Apple certainly wants its 10 million units sold by the end of the year, and competition gets tougher… Despite the fact that they’re being silent about all the rumors, the 2008 World Wide Developers conference is just a few weeks away, and Jobs will have to show the ace up his sleeve then!