Apple says the iPhone 3.0 software detailed today will be available “this summer”. Here’s how you should decipher that: There will be a new iPhone out this summer.

I find it hard to believe Apple would allow consumers to run out and check out the new Palm Pre without first causing some necks to crane at a new piece of hardware.

Also, Apple needs iPhones in as many hands as possible. Which means it’s market share has to increase tech-knowledgeable boomers and gadget-loving kids if they want a growing piece of the mobile pie. While today’s announced software update are certainly sweet, that just won’t reign in these audiences.

Or who knows. Maybe it is good enough? After all, no one can market software as good as Apple. And we are in a recession as well. iPhones, and the plans they come with, aren’t cheap. There’s also nothing to suggest that they’re capable of building a faster, thinner, cheaper and larger iPhone right now.

So again, time will tell. But after a complete overhaul of their Mac lineup, what else will there be left to boast about come June? As “this summer”, the season that’s included the launch of the last two iPhones, draws near I won’t be surprised if Apple has more bullets in the barrel.

Apple will be hosting an event today at 1pm PT where they will announce the features of the upcoming iPhone 3.0 software. (You can follow a live blog of the event on Macworld.)

For those not a member of Apple fandom (or a shareholder), here’s what this means:

For the business, the event is aimed at keeping the luster on a product that has become the benchmark of the mobile phone industry but is at risk of losing traction as competitors come around to duplicating what made it a success. (Read: The Palm Pre)

For developers, many of whom have made careers out of developing applications for the iPhone, this will hopefully mean a few new tools they can play with to bring an even better experience to the phone. I’ve downloaded several great apps since I got my iPhone and whether I use them to tune my guitar, chat with friends, play a game, check movie listings or find a restaurant, they’ve all been worth it.

That brings us to the consumer. End users will benefit from today’s announcement in a mostly indirect way. I suspect a lot of features announced won’t be cosmetic but rather aimed at expanding the development feature set. Other than Kevin Rose’s (probably correct) prediction that copy-and-paste functionality will be included in today’s announcements, I can’t imagine there will be more tangible updates for the user to look forward to in the iPhone interface.

But of course, no one ever really knows until it happens. Especially when it comes to Apple.

Update: Macworld is reporting that Apple has over 100 features for end user including, as reported, cut, copy & paste and shake to undo. (Developers have over 1000 new features to play with including a notification system and peer-to-peer connections via WiFi or Bluetooth.)

Update 2: In the end it looks like there are a lot of great new features that users will immediately benefit from and a whole lot more that developers can sink their teeth into. Rather than summarizing all the new features here I’ll point you to the Apple site, now updated with all the features in the coming software update.