APPLE'S MUCH Maligned überphone has been given the official seal of approval for use in enterprise situations by market research firm Gartner today.

No longer just a Maccessory for trust-fund brats and Hoxton Haircuts, the new firmware release will see the Iphone grow into a viable business tool for the rest of us.

“In its initial release, the Iphone was, with few exceptions, an Internet tablet with browser-based applications as its main offering, however, the release of firmware 2.0 changes that, enabling enterprises to develop local code and create applications that do not depend on network capabilities,” said Ken Dulaney,veepee and analyst at Gartner.

“The Iphone will thus match up initially in several segments against its main smartphone competitors — Blackberry, Windows Mobile and Symbian Series 60.”

With added functionality, including push based email, calendar and contact management, VPN support and vastly improved security, IT managers should soon be falling over themselves to take Apple's new baby into their arms. µ