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The speculation over Apples new "iPhone" is now in tatters after Linksys beat off the competition by bringing out their own range of wireless phones, happily named the "iPhone", complete with lower case "i" and capital "P".

Unknown to many, Cisco rightfully own the trademark for "iPhone'". This came about after Cisco acquired Infogear in 2000, who had previously registered the trademark name back in 1996.

Although the obvious name has now been taken, it is a safe bet that Apple has known about Cisco's trademark for a while, giving them time to create a name just as effective as "iPod" when it was first released.

The new phones offer users the choice to make free or low-cost internet phone calls using Voice over Internet Protocol (Voip), and search for local business information directly from the phone. The phone can also be used as a media center, allowing access to music, photos, and streaming videos directly from the Internet. The handset is also compatible with all major Internet chat services including Skype, MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, QQ, and ICQ.

Although the name alone has strong brand loyalty, the hype over the new wireless handset may only last a few months, if not weeks, because of its lack of features for the wanting mobile customers. Cisco may have missed the audience with the "iPhone", not using the aquired trademark goldmine to explore new avenues which have not yet been ventured by the company.

It is thought that Apples first models developed would appear during 2007 and will be 3G capable to allow fast over the air music downloads from the iTunes music store direct to the mobile. The name "iPhone" was never mentioned by Apple, but created and exploited by avid apple fans, eager to get their hands on Apples new handset, which is still being kept under wraps. See previous speculation from Onecompare over Apples new handset

The Linksys "iPhone" comes in two models - a £92 ($180) model which can make Skype phone calls and a £102 ($200) model which is a dual Skype and landline phone.