Ever since earlier this summer when Apple announced it would be coming out with a new generation of iPhone, the worldwide community of Apple geeks has been patiently waiting and latching on to any news it can find on the smart phone. Now it appears that the end is near.

"After weeks of speculation, the Apple event invites have been passed down to the press, and it looks like the tea leaves were right: the company will be announcing something on September 10. Based on the company's past behavior (and on the invite itself), it's all but certain that the company will be launching at least one new iPhone and the much-anticipated, redesigned iOS 7," reports arstechnica.com.

The news does not come as a particular surprise, considering the fact that many tech blogs and nes outlets had been speculating that September 10th would be the day Apple chooses to launch iOS 7 and the next gen iPhone. The release date comes less than one week after Samsung unveiled its new Galaxy Note III today, which is looking to attract customers away from Apple's juggernaut.

iOS 7 has been an ongoing process and one that we have had the pleasure of getting routine updates about. It has gone through multiple, highly-publicized beta tests that have given us a peak into what to expect, and iPhone enthusiasts are drooling at finally being able to get their hands on the final product.

The addition of a pumped-up Control Center has many people excited for never-before-seen levels of customization and control that the new iOS 7 aims to give its users. Siri is also expected to get a significant upgrade in her abilities, and of course, the new operating system is expected to be the fastest, cleanest version yet.

But that doesn't mean that it's been all good news for Apple and iOS 7. There have been grumblings in the Apple community over the oft-maligned new color scheme that appears much brighter and flatter than previous generations. The "frequent Locations" feature (which tracks a user's movements) has also received a fair amount of flack in the wake of the NSA spying scandal. Then of course, there will always be the issue of what's missing:

"I have three apps on my iPhone and iPad called Angry Birds. All three are different games, but the name is the same (Even Siri can't tell them apart). Other apps have names that are truncated, or goofy names that make then hard to spot. Other apps have an icon that I can never seem to recognize, so I end up searching for it every time I need it. Why not give users the ability to rename apps. And while you're at it, how about allowing devs to specify alternative icons that we can choose from?" ponders Adrian Kingsley-Hughes for ZDNet.

Though iOS 7 is still a far cry from perfection (in the world of technology there is no such thing), chances are good that it will be one of the most edgy, forward-thinking advancements in the smart phone community to date. Stay tuned for the latest news as we approach the release of iOS 7 on September 10th.