SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) — The long-rumoured arrival of a hybrid mobile phone and iPod music player from Apple Computer Inc. has morphed from a question of “If” to “When” among fans and analysts.Since Apple’s introduction of the iPod five years ago, the company has sold more than 67 million of the devices and more than 1.5 billion songs from its iTunes online music store.

Now, chief executive Steve Jobs and Apple are poised to roll out what has been dubbed the “iPhone,” perhaps as soon as January next year at the Macworld conference that kicks off every new year, analysts say.

“From a technical standpoint, the phone is pretty much done,” said American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu. “It’s a big endeavour and we believe it’s beyond speculation.”

Speculation has simmered since even before the introduction of the ROKR phone from Motorola Inc. that uses a slimmed-down version of the iTunes digital music jukebox to play 100 songs. But sales were lacklustre as users complained the phone did not hold more songs.

In recent weeks, blogs that cater to Apple fans have been buzzing insistently that the iPhone is coming. Just this week, the Taiwanese financial daily, Commercial Times, reported that Taiwan-based Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. is building the iPhone.

“There is a lot of buzz,” said Gartner analyst Mike McGuire. “But there are also a lot of things in the way that make it difficult. Which carrier and the like they use are not trivial challenges.”

An Apple spokesman said the company does not comment on rumours or speculation.

Jobs and Apple are famously tight-lipped about unannounced products. But company chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer did hint about a possible mobile phone with iPod-like functions during a conference call with analysts in July to discuss third-quarter financial results.

Analyst Wu believes the iPhone would be a candy-bar-shaped phone, rather than a flip phone like Motorola’s huge hit, the RAZR mobile phone.

And he believes the iPhone would not be too bogged down with all the bells and whistles often crammed into today’s smart phones.

“I think it’ll be pretty simple with functionality probably similar to an iPod Nano,” Wu said.