Sources say an announcement for the iPhone in France is expected around September 24, one day before the Apple Expo conference kicks off in Paris.

Apple’s initial push for the iPhone in Europe will focus on the UK, France, and Germany. Sources say France and Germany will also see the iPhone on store shelves in November (Deutsch Telekom gave November 9th as the date), two or three weeks after it goes on sale in the UK.

While there had been widespread speculation by other publications that Apple would tweak the iPhone for its European debut, Apple introduced a device identical to its U.S. counterpart, dashing hopes that Apple would boost the iPhone‘s EDGE wireless data capability to the faster 3G standard, or increase its built-in memory in light of the recent release of a 16GB iPod touch.

For all the flack Apple has received stateside for snubbing 3G, which is upwards of 20 times faster than EDGE, the company is expected to face even stiffer resistance in the European market, where 3G technology is considerably more widespread. In the U.S., 3G networks remain confined to select metropolitan areas; Europe, with its smaller land mass and greater population density, has had such networks deployed for years.

Prior to the iPhone‘s U.S. announcement in January, insiders explained that Apple was forgoing a 3G iPhone for the time being after internal testing showed unfavorable call quality and battery consumption. At the time, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said only that the company would bring a phone equipped with 3G to market further down the road.

Author: ThinkSecret.com Staff