BANGALORE, India — Apple's iPhone 3G will be launched here on Aug. 22, and iPhone fever is sweeping the Indian gadget community.

The first-generation iPhone was not sold in India, but some made their way here through the gray market or by tourists and business executives returning from the U.S. and other countries.

Ever since Airtel and Vodaphone announced that they would be launching the iPhone 3G on Aug. 22, many here have been anxiously awaiting a chance to buy the new iPhone.

Apple has said little about prices or which Airtel or Vodaphone stores will sell the iPhone 3G. Airtel has said it will begin offering the new phone on Aug. 22, but has said nothing about prices. Vodaphone is accepting iPhone 3G orders via SMS messages, but has also said nothing about the cost of the new phone or cancellation policies.

"All of us get onto blogs and post our comments on sites, trying to figure out the prices and the retail outlets. I would die with disappointment if I don't get one," said Anil Kumar, a 27-year-old techie.

Pramod Gopan is an early iPhone user who purchased one for $299 from the U.S. He got it unlocked for $25 at Bangalore's National Market, a treasure trove of smuggled electronics. (Gopan's iPhone was eventually stolen at a pub.) Gopan said he has learned how to unlock iPhones, a technique known here as a "jail break," that were purchased by colleagures in the U.S.

Once iPhones are unlocked, a local wireless carriers' SIM card is inserted and the iPhone can be used for local calls.

Despite the lack of information here about the new iPhone, some observers said the price could cost as much as $600. Others predict that if the new phone is bundled with a carrier's service, the price could be half that amount.

"Here in India, cellphones have become status symbols. Whether you use all the features or merely receive voice calls, it doesn't really matter," said Chiranjeev Shenoy, an executive at a multinational company. Shenoy said "$600 is too high a price to pay, around $300 is a good price" for a new iPhone.

Others note that there is little point in buying an iPhone 3G since no 3G data services are currently offered in India. What's more, features like GPS work poorly here. "Once these services are launched, the price of this phone too will come down," one call center employee said.

There are few reliable statistics on the number of iPhones in India. Estimates range from 100,000 to 500,000. Still, nearly everyone here has an opinion about the iPhone 3G. Those opinions will either be validated or disproved after Aug 22.