Vodafone firm to sell iPhone 3G in India

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Vodafone Essar, India's third-largest mobile operator, will sell Apple's (AAPL.O) iPhone 3G at 31,000 rupees ($708) for the 8GB model, a senior company official, who could not be named, said on Wednesday,

Vodafone Essar and larger rival Bharti Airtel (BRTI.BO) will start selling the device from Friday.

Vodafone Essar will charge 36,100 rupees ($824) for the 16GB model. The new iPhone sells for as low as $199 in the United States.

A spokesman for Bharti Airtel said the company would announce its price for the iPhone soon.

($1=43.8 rupees)

(Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy, Editing by Mark Williams)