[Updatex2 – 02.09.08] – (15.07pm GMT)
There is however a temporary fix. The following instructions are how to completely disable iTunes from backing up your devices. Note: This is not an ideal solution by any means, and could mean, in the event of a system crash and/or factory restore, you may not have an up-to-date backup to restore from.
1) Quit iTunes
2) Open Terminal.app
3) Type (or copy and paste) the following command, then hit Return:defaults write com.apple.iTunes DeviceBackupsDisabled -bool true
4) Open and run iTunes …