While Apple's week-long Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which kicks off in San Francisco on Monday, will be aimed at application developers for all Apple products, the key focus will be on the next-generation iPhone which the company will likely unveil at the event.

With the popular iPhone being Apple's most important device ever since its launch three years back, there is little doubt that the new, next-generation iPhone 4G will be one of the main highlights of CEO Steve Jobs' Monday-morning keynote address.

The unveiling of the new iPhone - which has already been `leaked' by tech blog Gizmodo as well as a couple of other sites - will apparently clear up one of the most glitzy Apple mysteries of the year - second only to the hype surrounding the January unveiling of the company's iPad tablet device.

Though the ever-so-secretive Apple has refrained from commenting on whether the `leaked' iPhone prototype specifications are similar to the actual handset, most industry observers believe that the device will more or less be identical to the leaked device - featuring a clearer display, a front-facing camera for facilitating video-conferencing, and longer battery life.

The handset will also probably feature updated software that Apple previewed in April - the update will likely include the multi-tasking capability which makes it easier for users to run multiple third-party apps simultaneously.