Just a brief note amending the post below: As we suspected, many of the major aftermarket iPod/iPhone interface manufacturers - DICE Electronics, USASpec, Peripheral and PIE - are already developing replacement docking cables for their interfaces that will hand charging duties over to USB at 5volts to support the iPhone 3G’s new requirements. According to the limited information we have so far, the new cables will not require replacing the actual interface modules or the wiring connections to the vehicle, but will simply replace the connection between the iPod/iPhone and the module, making this an easy upgrade. They expect to have these new cables available anywhere from 6 weeks to three months…more information to come as we receive it!

I came to work this morning with my new iPhone 3G and began testing all the interfaces and cables we currently package with our spec.dock product, and quickly realized that Apple has removed the ability to charge the new device via FireWire. For a while now, Apple has been transitioning away from FireWire syncing for iPods and iPhones, but the physical ability to charge at 12volts via the FireWire charging pins was still there…until now.

This is a problem, as nearly all the vehicle interfaces - OEM and aftermarket - use 12volt charging since the vehicle’s electrical system is already running between 11.5 and 14.5 volts, eliminating the need for extra electronics to step that voltage down to the 5volts that USB charges at.

Here’s what you get now when you connect to any device that doesn’t charge over USB:

Since we’re talking about a pretty large industry here with quite a few players (we’ve tested DICE, Dension, USASpec, older Mercedes, older BMW, older Alpine, etc.), I’m positive that we’re going to see this issue be addressed pretty quickly, and we’ll be posting new information as we get it. We’re in contact with most of these manufacturers pretty frequently, so we’ll be up on what’s going on…Get in touch with us if you have any questions, and check back soon. We’re on it!

Click on over to Gizmodo for up to the minute coverage of Steve Jobs’ Keynote speech today, where details about the seemingly inevitable iPhone update and a few other products/changes will be announced. It’s likely to be really exciting news, so make sure you don’t miss it!