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After months of speculation and sneak-peeks, the latest iteration of Apple's iOS will be available for iDevices around the globe this Friday at 10AM PST, according to MacStories.

Quoting ''an inside source'' at AT&T, the site claimed iOS 4.2 will be made available, along with iTunes 10.1, which will be necessary for users wishing to update. Also making its first public debut will be Mac OS X 10.6.5, which is needed for AirPrint functionality to be introduced with iOS 4.2.

MacStories also claimed the OS X 10.6.5 update cleared Apple's certification process earlier today, while iTunes 10.1 was ready to roll some three weeks ago. The iOS 4.2 update itself was originally slated for release last Tuesday, before a bug relating to the display of Japanese characters forced a delay, according to the AT&T source. There have been claims that last-minute bugs discovered in the 10.6.5 update are to blame for a later than expected iOS release.

As Neowin reported earlier this month, iOS 4.2 is primarily aimed at bringing Apple's iPad up to speed, features-wise, with the iPhone and iPod Touch. Among the features to be added are multitasking, printing and content streaming, along with a number of cosmetic changes. Several of these features will also be added to the iPhone - excluding the iPhone 3G - and iPod touch product families.

Developers gained access to the ''Golden Master'' build of iOS 4.2 - generally considered the finished product - on November 1. OS X developers were given access to a twelfth beta version of 10.6.5 earlier this week. The OS X update is billed as a maintenance release and does not add new features beyond AirPrint compatibility.

Neowin has the article HERE!