This week's hottest iPhone stories: YouTube on iPhone, better battery life, Bluetooth headsets, Google applications, Opera Mini browser, iPhone cases

There’s now less than one week to go until the iPhone launches in the US, and there’s only so much hype that can be reported. Much of the news has been focused on the latest tidbits of information that Apple has chosen to reveal, or has been ‘leaked’ to the press.

The big news, features wise, is that YouTube will be on the iPhone, starting with 10,000 videos converted to the iPhone-friendly H.264 format, and with the entire catalogue converted by the autumn.

Apple has updated its battery life claims – now you’ll get up to 8 hours of talk time. Impressive, if true.

Apple’s official Bluetooth earpiece has been approved. For an alternative, higher-tech solution, the Jawbone noise-cancelling headset will be sold alongside the iPhone from 29th June.

The University of Washington leaked iPhone specifications, gleaned at WWDC, on one of their blogs, though it didn’t tell us much that we weren’t already aware of. Later it was voluntarily pulled off the Web as staff thought it could violate their non-disclosure agreement.

It seems that there has been an undercover army of iPhone testers, given the dubious pleasure of testing how the iPhone reacts to approaching concrete at high velocity, being doused in water, and less mundane tasks like… making a phone call (had you forgotten that the iPhone does that?)

Google CEO, Eric Schmidt, is excited by the certain prospect of greater collaboration with Apple. You can be almost certain that Google’s entire collection of Web 2.0 applications will find their way onto the iPhone in the not too distant future.

AT&T’s competition also seem quite happy with the iPhone. “I actually hope the iPhone does quite well,” said Ivan Seidenberg, CEO of Verizon. Ahh, but were his teeth clenched when he said it? We don’t know, but it’s a good bit of spin.

Opera Software has created its own familiar-looking advertising, having a dig at the iPhone and letting everyone know how its Opera Mini browser is so much better. Course it is.

Looking for iPhone protection? You could try the eminently sensible Pacific Rim cases, or instead try some sexier apparel.

BYB has shown off its sliding touch screen concept phone, the Balance, whilst Nokia has announced its love of touch screens. Really.

All this and more on iPhonic.tv.