Unwired View has investigated the patents of the upcoming iPhone and reports this:

"During his presentation of the iPhone, Steve Jobs mentioned that they have filed for more then 200 patents to protect the inventions they’ve put into this new gadget. Want to know what exactly have they patented? Then read on.

To find out which of the cool iPhone features has been patented by Apple and are now protected from replication and which ones you can expect to be copied soon by the likes of Nokia, Samsung or Motorola, we’ve combed through the U.S. Patent and Trademark database and checked all relevant Apple’s patents.

And we came to a conclusion that this time Steve Jobs did his homework and most of the key features that make iPhone an iPhone will not be easily copied by competitors. This applies to Multi touch display, the idea to use full screen of the device for User Interface, scrolling, zooming and other finger gestures, soft on screen controls, multifunctionality, proximity, ambient light sensors and many other functions."

Unwired View then goes on to report on patents relating to:
MULTI-TOUCH SCREEN
MULTIFINGER GESTURES
DEVICE INTEGRATION
Full screen touch screen display covering almost all the area of the hand-held device and operated mainly through on screen buttons
Multifunctionality - iPod, Cellphone and Internet Communicator in one device. Functions changes through software. Switching between applications (Phone, iPod, Internet) through on screen buttons
MULTITASKING
ACCELEROMETER
PROXIMITY DETECTOR
SYSTEM FOR SENSING AMBIENT LIGHT

Of interest is the "Multitasking" patents, something not covered elsewhere or in any demos. Perhaps it is not going to be fully functional in version 1 of the iPhone software, but surely the hardware has the capability, it will be a software development issue. The Multitasking patents describe activating a unique GUI display if one hits two or more device functionalities (buttons?) simultaneously. Is it possible that Jobs has hidden features of the iPhone he has not revealed in the same way as he demoed Mac OS X Leopard? This would be a phenomenal feature that would be very difficult for the competition to match. So far, all the competition has been able to talk about is making a phone that looks like an iPhone. But they don't get it. Their rip-offs won't function like an iPhone.

Unwired View continues, "So Steve Jobs exclaimed during keynote “And boy have we patented it!” it was not an empty boast. The have indeed PATENTED it. And though not all of the claims have received patent protection yet and even less of them may withstand scrutiny in court if Apple decides to enforce them, many of the claims should should stick.

I guess Steve has learned his lessons from Mac and there it would be very difficult for Nokia or Samsung to repeat the Microsoft Windows feat and create an iPhone knock-off without violating at least some of Apple’s IP."

Apple Tech News reports:

"Apple is hard at work making the next version of the iPhone worth every penny of its subsidized $499 price tag. The next iPhone probably due out at Macworld or early spring of '08 will incorporate a GPS receiver chip closely matching the SiRFstarIII from SiRF Technology. Even though the StarIII’s power consumption is a bit higher than Apple would like it is considered the best chip for a mobile device of this kind, having the capability to receive signals from 20 different satellites simultaneously and a super fast First Fix Time.

Because of the high expectations placed upon the iPhone, Apple is certain to use a chipset using Assisted GPS technology, which cuts down the time needed to determine a location using GPS. (A-GPS) is necessary in urban areas with tall buildings or locations with heavy tree cover.

The first phone/GPS devise to fully utilize this technology is CNS-4320 from DiXCOM. The CNS-4320 hybrid device uses GSM radio with GPRS data for text and multimedia messaging. DiXCOM has also equipped the CNS with the Traffic Message Channel (TMC) for real time traffic information, a technology Apple is thought to be developing."

"What will change? Pretty much everything," Ahonen writes.

Communities Dominate Brands article about the ensuing iPhone era:

"Lets start with the obvious. From June all handset makers will get their first tests of the iPhone. Then Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, SonyEricsson, LG, and the dozens of second and third tier manufacturers will all see what they are up against. Not the outwardly form factor - yes, the iPhone is cool and slick and sexy - but the more important internal software. How do they make it so user-friendly? This is Apple's strong suit. More so than even stunning outwardly design, is the internal software on user interface. The iPhone for most of its parts will definitely be the best phone out there. Yes, it probably will not be perfect at all, not the very first version (although it might be that too) but certainly in most major features, making calls, listening to voice mail, sending and receiving most messages, accessing the web, consuming music and videos - the iPhone will be supreme," Ahonen writes.

"So from June all reviewers around the world will compare all new high-end phones with the iPhone. How near do they arrive in being 'almost as good as the iPhone.' This is the phrase we will see in most reviews of smartphones. And the yardstick in usability will from now on - and my prediction is that for the fore-seeable future of mobile phones - the latest iPhone. A clear watershed moment in the industry. For the first time a major handset device which was designed from the start to be both a multipurpose smartphone and yet easy to use," Ahonen writes.

"Much like the Western calendar marks time from before and after Jesus Christ, and how the computer world changed totally by the Macintosh - remembering that Windows is Microsoft's copy of the Mac operating system - I am certain that the mobile telecoms world will count its time in two Eras. The Era BI: time Before the iPhone, and the ERA AI: time After the iPhone."

According to Macsimum News:

“The iPhone is one of the most anticipated handsets ever in the wireless industry, and we want to make sure that every drop of equity from the iPhone accrues to the AT&T brand,” AT&T spokesman Michael Coe told Reuters. “We want to be as far along as possible with our rebranding in advance of the launch of the iPhone.”

The article begins by stating, "AT&T plans to speed up its re-branding campaign at Cingular wireless stores, seeking to raise AT&T’s profile ahead of the launch of the iPhone next month."