Update: 3G iPhone To Launch In Australia July 11 on Optus & Vodafone

Update II:Looks like both Optus and Vodafone are launching in Oz on July 11. No pricing at this stage, and no local link in the press release, but Apple have sent through an announcement that Vodafone’s launching the 3G iphone in Australia, New Zealand and Portugal on July 11. I’ve added the press release to the rest after the jump…
 
Update: Just got a press release from Apple stating that they’re launching the 3G iPhone with Optus. Pricing and plans are yet to be announced, although there is a website that you can lodge your interest at. Full press release after the jump…

The dust is still settling, but the local Apple site is back up and it offers a few interesting nuggets. First off, the Australian iPhone will hit shelves on July 11. That means that all our previous guesses about the iPhone launch coinciding with the opening of the Sydney Apple store are false.

There’s also no word yet on Australian pricing, nor the ability to preorder on the Apple Store website. Considering that the US$199 and US$299 prices for the 8GB and 16GB models in the US are still locked to AT&T on a 24 month contract in the States, this could mean that we’ll see subsidised handsets locally. I’d expect to hear a bit of noise from Optus and Vodafone within the next few hours. After all, it isn’t even 5:30 am Sydney time yet.

Hit the jump for the 3G iPhone press release: