My iPhone 3G which is less than 6 months old, has the new 4.1 format shuts itself down periodically in the middle of phone calls or other activity. It reboots itself in 3-4 minutes but this is NOT acceptable behavior.
Yeah ^ that is the best option for you, if you take the phone and just restart it yourself, put it in "safe mode" by holding the home and power button for 15 seconds, then leave it for a few minutes and turn it back on.
This worked for me when my 3G started acting up hope it helps, if not Apple will happily replace your iPhone