Rumors are flying that Apple is strongly considering releasing the iPhone 2.1 firmware on September 9th. This has been reported on several sites known to be reliable about news in the Apple world.

One interesting tidbit, however, is that insiders were told that there are parts of the iPhone 2.1 firmware “that were specifically removed from developer seeds in order to keep them secret from the world.” If that is true, that means there may be some surprise features that will be announced on September 9th. Features are rumored to include various bug fixes and security improvements that have been long awaited.

Developers may note that Apple has ceased delivery of iPhone 2.1 firmware betas over the past few weeks, which is consistent with it having been declared Gold Master in anticipation of the upcoming release.

We’ll keep you updated as to this development, but it appears the newest firmware update is upcoming very soon.