I'm amazed to see such a huge fuss over this like it's some kind of big deal... Europe has been near-100% 3G for at least four years now. It's old news and I can't believe that the US still has to see it as something new and exciting.
I'd never even have *heard* of EDGE if it wasn't for the first-gen iPhone, Europe can't comprehend that stone-age technology. In fact, I'm willing to bet that the 3G iPhone was a rush job when Steve Jobs suddenly realised he had a market, outside of North America, which didn't rely on wax tablets and cave paintings to communicate. iPhone without 3G = epic fail in Europe which is probably why Apple did it.