It seems like the rumors are exponentially increasing at this point. With WWDC just hours away, the rumor mills are in full force.

When Forbes editor Brian Caulfield made a visit to Quanta Computer distribution center Wednesday night, he was greeted with a host of shipping related activity. Outside the 168,000-square-foot facility; Brain was met with palettes of both white iMac boxes and curiously, unmarked, brown cardboard boxes. Depicted in images shown above, Brain believes that the unmarked boxes are in-fact the new iPhone Steve Jobs is rumored to announce at WWDC on Monday.

Based on intelligence uncovered by ImportGenius.com, 19 shipments weighing between 3,700 and 6,500 kilograms passed through the Port of Oakland to a Quanta distribution center in Fremont, Calif over the past few weeks. During his visit to the distribution center, Brain watched as employees “hustled to maneuver pallets of the brown boxes around trucks from FedEx and Advanced Logistics”. When asked about the new iPhone, one Quanta employee called the shipping supervisor who was “really busy right now”.

Meanwhile, iDealsChina believes that the new iPhone dimensions have changed. Apparently the new dimensions are thinner, by .50mm (~.02 inches) and shorter by 2.00mm (~.08 inches). iDealsChina was also the source behind the Griffin case leak last week, therefore it is hard to determine whether this new information is legitimate. iDealsChina claims that four other case manufacturers had access to the same specifications, so these companies will be forced to either sell the thousands of loose fitting cases or destroy them. It should be noted that Apple goes through great lengths to keep new product information very secretive.

Finally, early this morning, MacRumors posted this image, originally from MacTalk.com.au. It is believed that this box contains a 3G iPhone demo unit. Clear markings on the outside clearly state: “SUBJECT TO TERMS OF NDA. DON NOT OPEN UNTIL TUESDAY JUNE 10th 2008.” June 10th is the day after the WWDC keynote, where Steve Jobs is rumored to introduce a new iPhone model. However, local time, the WWDC keynote falls about at that time for Australians (a few hours before, actually). Both Vodafone and SingTel announced they would be bringing the iPhone to Australia “later this year”. From MacTalk:

“the iPhone will go on display with a sign saying ‘look how cool I am – you can buy me on this date’.”

This years Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off with a keynote from Apple, Inc CEO Steve Jobs on Monday, June 9th. Steve Jobs is expected to release an updated iPhone with 3G capabilities. Stay with theiLife.com for continuing coverage of pre-WWDC rumors and hype; and during WWDC for our liveblog of the keynote. If you want to be updated with urgent news from the keynote, sign up for our SMS updater (expect about 10-20 messages)!

This evening, CrunchGear posted the first pictures of the banners in the lobby of Moscone West for WWDC 2008.

The two visible banners hung above the lobby read: “OS X Leopard” “The worlds most advanced operating system”; “OS X iPhone” “The worlds most advanced mobile platform”. On the wall, the third and last visable banner says: “WWDC 2008”, displayed on an iPhone over a MacBook Air with icons related to the iPhone on the right, such as the Phone application icon and the App Store icon and icons from OS X software such as XCode and Time Machine on the left. The MacBook Apple often hangs banners with black covering around them that contain unreleased information; however there has been no such sighting of that this year.

When Apple hangs banners for WWDC, there is often much speculation and analyzation of contents of the banner and meanings behind them. You can read the ongoing debate at the MacRumors forum; or check out previous (2007, 2006) years banner sightings.

More photos after the jump! Read more…

To add to the growing rumors surrounding WWDC, today, iLounge.com released images of two touchscreen components that are similar to the current iPhone and iPod Touch components, but are slightly smaller in size by .3 and .7 inches. Also, one Wall Street analyst feeds the fire about an iTablet and sheds light on new iPhones at WWDC.

The photos, shown above depict touch components that appear to be destined for a future iPhone or iPod Touch. Taiwanese display manufacturer Host Optical claims they are working with Apple on the new displays and are responsible for the release of the information. The components are described as a “projected capacitance touch panel” with the emphasis that they are superior to the current touchscreen used in the iPhone and iPod touch. According to Host Optical, the new touch components do not get less sensitive over time, are more durable and can withstand water and very humid environments.

iLounge.com believes these new screens may not be destined for the new 3G iPhone, specifically the 2.8 inch display. iLounge believes that “there is zero chance that a 2.8” screen is going to be in Apple’s first 3G version of the iPhone”; but most likely for a smaller “iPhone nano” or fourth generation iPod Nano.

It should be noted that Apple never reveals who supplies components and suppliers rarely admit they are working for the Cupertino company. By releasing this information before product release, Host Optical is violating terms with Apple. Theoretically, anyone can claim that they are suppling components for Apple. Additionally, majority of rumors agree that the new 3G iPhone will have very similar dimensions to the first generation iPhone, with only added tapering around the edges.

Also today, American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu published in a report to clients that 4 and 7 inch touchscreen devices are beyond prototype stages inside Apple. Wu believes that these devices are crosses between the Mac and iPod touch and may be a modern recreation of the Newton MessagePad from the 1990’s. Shaw predicts that the devices will most likely not see light at next weeks WWDC keynote.

Shaw Wu is confident that Steve Jobs will introduce two new iPhone models next week; one of them the hotly anticipated 3G iPhone, and another refined version of the current 2.5G model that would be significantly cheaper. He says his information is based from supply chain sources.

Finally Wu says that while WWDC typically highlights Macintosh related products, this year may be an exception. Because new portable Macs “most likely won’t be ready for volume production until the September quarter”, this years event will not highlight new Macs.

Steve Jobs keynote will kick off at 10AM PST (1PM EST) on June 9th. theiLife.com will be in attendance and livebloging from the keynote here. If you can’t be at a computer, you can still recieve urgent updates (expect about 10-20) to your cell phone via SMS by signing up here.

The following video is a brief synopsis of theiLife.com’s WWDC 2008 plans. Check it out, and tell us what you think!

Sidney San Martin, theiLife blogger will be attending this years Worldwide Developers Conference and reporting back for theiLife.com. Sidney narrates this video, which is a brief synopsis of our plans for WWDC. Stay tuned at theiLife.com for continuing WWDC coverage- live.theilife.com for the liveblog of the Keynote. You can sign up for urgent (expect about 10-20) messages from the keynote delivered to your phone via SMS here.

As the week is drawing to a close, and with WWDC starting on Monday, things are really coming down to the wire. Yesterday, the SMS Updater went live, and if you haven’t already, please sign yourself up! Today the liveblog is up at its final resting location. You can now access the liveblog at live.theilife.com. Bookmark this address now for our live coverage beginning on Monday! Remember to stay tuned for the latest updates here at theiLife.com!

Since its founding, Apple has designed products aimed at changing the way we use technology. From early computer offerings like the Apple ][ to today’s iPhone, Apple has always changed the way we interact with technology. And Apple, since the introduction of the first AirPort base station in 1999, has continually pushed for a world with fewer wires and more elegant connectivity.

It started with the the Macintosh Portable in 1989. While the Macintosh Portable was a small step towards a portable, wireless device we have become accustomed with these days, it suffered from several fatal flaws- it was large, slow, awkwardly shaped and expensive. As a result, the Macintosh Portable didn’t sell as well as Apple would have liked. But Apple didn’t stop there. They followed the Macintosh Portable with the PowerBook, and it stuck. The PowerBook lived on Apple’s product line from October 1991 all the way to January 2006 when it was replaced by the MacBook Pro. Since then, Apple added the iBook and, recently, the MacBook Air.

Let’s step back a few years. On October 23, 2001, Apple Computer, Inc. released what some consider to be the most revolutionary product of the past decade: the iPod. The iPod took digital music and put it on the go. Suddenly, you could have thousands of songs at your fingertips without changing a single CD. Over the course of 5 years, Apple’s iPod reached the pockets of more than 30 million. To date, Apple has sold 150 million iPods.

Flash forward to January 2007, when Steve Jobs announces the iPhone. Apple redefines another mobile device. The iPhone went past cell phones’ old limits in a manner only Apple is capable of. The iPhone is reinventing the cell phone market like the iPod did for portable music.

With the imminent release of a new iPhone and iPhone firmware 2.0, Apple is moving us in a direction that will change the way we interact with technology once again. With the help of our favorite Cupertino company, we are being set free, and moving to a world without wires.

TheiLife.com is proud to formally announce that we will be liveblogging from the WWDC 2008 Keynote. This time around, we have refined our AJAX app from Macworld to be less server heavy so we can serve more users. The AJAX updater is still being tweaked, so it should be available by the end of the week. However, the SMS Updater is now live, so if you want to sign up to be updated with the latest urgent updates from the Keynote via SMS (expect about 10-20 messages), click here or the big shiny button below. Stay tuned for the latest information about WWDC here at theiLife.com.

This weekend, the new Willowbrook Mall Apple Store will be opening. That is- the Willowbrook Mall located in Houston, Texas.

Today Apple announced the grand opening date of the Willowbrook Mall for June 7th at 10AM. Located in Houston, Texas; the Willowbrook Mall is host to over 160 stores and services in over 1.53 million square feet of retail space. The latest store joins two other existing Apple Stores in Houston, the Memorial City Store and the Galleria Store. The Willowbrook store is located near Dillards and JC Penney. For directions, store schedule and more information, check out the stores website.

What is interesting about the location of this new Apple Store is that there is another Willowbrook Mall, located in New Jersey, with an Apple Store scheduled to open in it this fall. While details are still light, you can read more about the Wayne, New Jersey Apple Store also in Willowbrook Mall here.

If you are located near this new Apple Store, or know someone who is, theiLife is looking for someone to take pictures or video of the store and even liveblog from the grand opening. Please contact us if you are interested.

Today Apple has launched this years “Buy a Mac, Get a Free iPod” back to school promotion.

As rumored by both MacRumors and AppleInsider yesterday; Apple launched the promotion early this morning.

To qualify for the deal, students must purchase a MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, or Mac Pro and either an iPod Touch or a 8GB iPod nano before September 15th 2008 to receive a rebate for the iPod. All products much be purchased from Apple either online, in an Apple Retail Store or at an Apple Authorized Campus Store. Any student accepted into or currently attending college and any employee of a public or private K-12 institution or higher education facility are eligible for the promotion.

Last year, the deal only offered a 200 dollar credit towards any new iPod (at the time, a free 4GB iPod nano), however this years deal offers a $300 discount which equates to an 8GB iPod Touch. Students can also opt for a 8GB iPod nano if they desire.

As reported by Morgan Stanley earlier this year, almost 40 percent of all college students are planning to purchase a Mac as their next computer. Apple currently holds a 15 percent market share in the student demographic.

The iLife staff notes that writers Matt Dodd, Matthew Rosenhein and Dan Spiers plan to purchase MacBook Pros under this new deal for college next year. Sidney San Martin and Matt Hamilton, both college students, already own Apple laptops and took advantage of last years deal.

It is already the second day of June and WWDC is fast approaching. TheiLife.com will be attending this year’s World Wide Developers’ Conference and providing pictures, videos and live coverage, as we did for Macworld 2008. Our ultimate goal is to run another AJAX-based liveblog from the Keynote on June 9th. However, because our hosting provider threatened to terminate us after the heavy load from Macworld, we need to make sure the new AJAX app will be able to handle a large number of users without seriously compromising the server. We have also hooked up with theDigitalLifestyle.tv to provide video updates throughout WWDC. We would, of course, love to hear from you — what do you think? Are you going to WWDC and would like to help provide coverage for theiLife? We want to hear from you — please contact us!