At the WWDC on Monday, Apple officially announced the 3G iPhone. I say ‘officially’ because everyone knew it was coming, and most of the details had been leaked. But now it’s official, so here is what we know about the upcoming 3G iPhone.

Most of the previews pouring in from numerous sites have talked about the enabling and disabling of the 3G settings. Also the clarity of the speaker seems to be improved. There have been a few aesthetic changes, such as the back cover changing to plastic. The shape has had minor changes, as the volume buttons are silver metal, and the weight balance is different.

The 3G iPhones will launch at $199 for the 8GB, with a $299 price tag for the 16GB. The 3G data plans will cost $30/month, compared to $20/month for the regular plans.

Probably the biggest faux pas of the announcements, is activation will be required in-store. So, when the iPhone is launched on July 11th all the eager customers will have to wait in line, buy their phone, and then have the sales associate activate it for them. Needless to say, that will take quite some time.

Speculation over the name of the next OS X was rampant prior to the WWDC. The favorite among the names was Snow Leopard, and it looks like the odds were correct this time. During the WWDC, Snow Leopard was previewed, and finally announced to the public.

Apple has declared that Snow Leopard will focus more on quality and performance than major changes to interface. Here is a great tagline, from the press release of Snow Leopard, “Snow Leopard is optimized for multi-core processors, taps into the vast computing power of graphic processing units (GPUs), enables breakthrough amounts of RAM and features a new, modern media platform with QuickTime® X”

Quicktime X is being boasted as a more comprehensive playback tool than Quicktimes of the past. Unfortunately, no details were given as to just how it would be better. Safari is another program that will be seeing an upgrade through Snow Leopard, focusing on javascript programming. Apple is predicting a 53 percent increase in javascript execution, providing faster support for web 2.0 applications.

Today will begin the WWDC ’08 conference. There has been speculation all across the internet as to what will officially be seen at the WWDC this year. The largest hype surrounding the conference is the unveiling of the new 3G iPhones. On top of that release, many Mac users are eagerly awaiting to see the new OS X slated to be announced.

So, what do you all think is going to show up at the conference this year? Is there any particular aspect of the conference that you’re interested in?

As soon as any breaking news drops, FreeMacBlog will be posting it.

It is being rumored by Macnn.com that the next version of the Mac OS X will be demoed at the WWDC. To re-iterate, this is just speculation and no official announcement has been made.

Information from their sources indicate Apple wants to give developers a feel of what the new OS X can do. Apple has said before that the new OS X is less about changing the interface/style, and more about improving speed, and stability.

The new name of the OS X is being speculated upon. Most experts and users believe it to be either Snow Leopard or Cougar. Commercial release of the new OS X is schedule for sometime in the beginning of 2009.

Our neighbors across the Atlantic Ocean are all smiles today, as the iTunes movie rental service launches. The major studios, 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Entertainment, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM), Sony Pictures Television International and Lionsgate UK will all have movies available to rent.

Apple is estimating that around 700 movies will be available to rent from the outset. Eddy Cue, VP of iTunes had this to say about the service, “We think customers in the UK are going to love being able to enjoy their favorite movies on their iPod, iPhone or on a widescreen TV with Apple TV”

Here is a list of different prices for the rentals: iTunes movies are available at £6.99 for library title purchases and £10.99 for new releases. iTunes Movie Rentals are £2.49 for library title rentals and £3.49 for new releases.

I know everyone loves to hear the word “free”, so I’m happy to report on some freebies from Apple. The only kicker is that you have to be a college student to cash-in on Apple’s newest give-away.

Apple’s new deal, is that if you’re a student and you buy a new iMac or Macbook, you will receive a new iPod Touch for free. Of course there is some hassle surrounding the deal, as you won’t get an iPod for free upfront. You will have to purchase the iPod and wait for your money to come back to you in rebate form.

Still, starting off the fall semester of college with a brand new Mac, and iPod, is what I call ‘kicking it off right’.