iPhone 3GS Launch Day Details and AT&T Pricing

[bbeers]

Originally Posted by chrmjenkins

It depends how much you spend per month and whether or not you're late on bills.

Then why have I been a customer with ATT now for 4 years, while always having one of the most expensive plans and not missed a single payment and yet I am still not eligible until Jan 2010?

[danielchow]

Originally Posted by dwd3885

Then why do some people get eligibility in July, when they signed the very same two-year contract I did. This is the question no one seems to be able to answer.

then there may have been a mistake. if you still have your receipt and the contract papers, or whatever you have to show the actual date of your contract, have it ready when you go in to either Apple Store or ATT. Or, contact ATT customer service.

i'm doubtful if you'll find your answer here.

by the way, the ATT rep in the video freaks me out too.

[dwd3885]

Originally Posted by chrmjenkins

It depends how much you spend per month and whether or not you're late on bills.

Never been late on any bills. Spend $150/month and have been with ATT since 2003

[timmodugdale]

AT&T should be welcoming current users to buy a new iPhone, regardless of when they purchased their last one. All it does is binds them to another two year contract. They are not losing any money by forcing me to renew for another two years. They are actually ensuring that I will remain an AT&T customer longer -- something they should WANT to do.

Of course, if Apple does not renew THEIR contract with AT&T, maybe I'll be happy I waited to buy a new iPhone. AT&T has done nothing but screw iPhone users with unnecessary costs. I'm sorry, but it does not cost $10 MORE a month to provide me 3G connectivity. And it CERTAINLY does not cost $40 a month more to allow to to tether my iPhone to my laptop. AT&T can drop dead.

[Feng Shui]

The AT&T representative creeps me out. Looks like a zombie with his head tilter that much.

[joel90069]

Why go to an ATT store when you can pick it up at an Apple store. You know the organization and customer service is going to be infinitely better. The online Apple store will also ship it to you for free.

[arainert]

Originally Posted by chrmjenkins

It depends how much you spend per month and whether or not you're late on bills.

After a brief chat with AT&T, it seems as though they're doing the following:

- if you owned a 1st Gen and are upgrading to a 3Gs you qualify immediately
- if you owned a 3G and are upgrading to a 3Gs you will qualify 18 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of January 2010 dates)
- if you owned a 1st Gen AND a 3G, you will qualify 12 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of July ~13 dates)

This is very poorly communicated but looks to be the situation, which is a tiny bit better than I thought it was last night as they're not totally hosing their most loyal customers.

Can anyone else confirm?

a

[mobi]

Last summer's ATT ordering process was a catastrophe!

[purd002]

Originally Posted by joel90069

Why go to an ATT store when you can pick it up at an Apple store. You know the organization and customer service is going to be infinitely better. The online Apple store will also ship it to you for free.

Because I have a two line account and the online apple store isn't smart enough to handle multi-line accounts. I'm holding off right now because it appears att's site only has the black models.

[DipDog3]

Tried to preorder but it wouldn't let me!

[NightStorm]

Originally Posted by timmodugdale

AT&T should be welcoming current users to buy a new iPhone, regardless of when they purchased their last one. All it does is binds them to another two year contract. They are not losing any money by forcing me to renew for another two years. They are actually ensuring that I will remain an AT&T customer longer -- something they should WANT to do.

Of course, if Apple does not renew THEIR contract with AT&T, maybe I'll be happy I waited to buy a new iPhone. AT&T has done nothing but screw iPhone users with unnecessary costs. I'm sorry, but it does not cost $10 MORE a month to provide me 3G connectivity. And it CERTAINLY does not cost $40 a month more to allow to to tether my iPhone to my laptop. AT&T can drop dead.

What do you expect the other carriers to do?

Really its not that hard of a concept... you bought a subsidized phone and agreed to keep it for 2 years. The same thing happened to me when I bought the Verizon Razr way back in the day, and they released a new one a year later. I didn't bitch and moan because I knew what I agreed to. You can't have both the benefit of an unsubsidized phone and the cost savings of a subsidized one at the same time.

[imwoblin]

Wait in line at 7am at an AT&T store to pick up 3GS??? BWAHAHAHA!
I've learned my lesson after the first two releases......

[Schizoid]

All you AT&T customers, look at where your cash is going...
it's furnishing that tilty-necked man's nice showroom... mmm

If they screw you out of another few bucks, maybe he can fit another plasma in the corner...

in a phone shop..... weird.... but nice of you to finance that

[jandep]

Anyone know the process for upgrading from an original iPhone to the 3GS via Apple's online site preorder?

Will I just drop in the old SIM card when it arrives on the 19th? Or does it come with a new one? Will I be able to activate through iTunes or do I go to the ATT store also?

I've been out of the game since I skipped the 3G generation, but I know that at some point they were allowing people to activate 3Gs (little "s" - plural, I can see this becoming a problem) at home.

[chrmjenkins]

Originally Posted by arainert

After a brief chat with AT&T, it seems as though they're doing the following:

- if you owned a 1st Gen and are upgrading to a 3Gs you qualify immediately
- if you owned a 3G and are upgrading to a 3Gs you will qualify 18 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of January 2010 dates)
- if you owned a 1st Gen AND a 3G, you will qualify 12 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of July ~13 dates)

This is very poorly communicated but looks to be the situation, which is a tiny bit better than I thought it was last night as they're not totally hosing their most loyal customers.

Can anyone else confirm?

a

It won't be simply owned, it will be continuously operated with. Those of us who sold their original iphones before th 3G came out know that it invalidated our upgrade eligibility (I had to sell mine owing to the fact that I needed money to move )

[Matt23]

Originally Posted by timmodugdale

AT&T should be welcoming current users to buy a new iPhone, regardless of when they purchased their last one. All it does is binds them to another two year contract. They are not losing any money by forcing me to renew for another two years. They are actually ensuring that I will remain an AT&T customer longer -- something they should WANT to do.

Of course, if Apple does not renew THEIR contract with AT&T, maybe I'll be happy I waited to buy a new iPhone. AT&T has done nothing but screw iPhone users with unnecessary costs. I'm sorry, but it does not cost $10 MORE a month to provide me 3G connectivity. And it CERTAINLY does not cost $40 a month more to allow to to tether my iPhone to my laptop. AT&T can drop dead.

Because when they subsidize your phone by $200, they expect to have you as customer for two years in return, it's quid pro quo. This is the same with any cell phone that you get subsidized from a carrier. They wouldn't extend this discount to you otherwise.

[NightStorm]

Originally Posted by imwoblin

Wait in line at 7am at an AT&T store to pick up 3GS??? BWAHAHAHA!
I've learned my lesson after the first two releases......

If I understood the video correctly, the preorder phones are available starting at 7am. Anyone else would need to wait until the store opens.

[jsinger986]

When I check my elegability I'm told:
"You can take advantage of our no commitment pricing. Additional discounts may be available on 07/12/2009"

What does *MAY BE AVAILABLE* mean?

[KindredMAC]

Congratulations AT&T!!!! This could very well be the LAST iPhone launch you ever see due to your idiotic ways of doing business.

Apple is seeing time and time again that letting the 3rd parties, for example Motorola and AT&T, have too much say just ruins everything that makes Apple so easy to use.

The initial Gen 1 iPhone launch was handled so much better than the 3G launch last year. It was proven that AT&T is not needed for activation yet they tried to impose that fiasco of an activation process on 3G launch day.

When I bought my wife's refurbed 3G in February all I had to do was call to activate it and plug it into iTunes. No need to go to a brick and mortar store and deal with a moron AT&T CSR.

The fact that AT&T was not on the list for worldwide cell providers in having MMS and Tethering available next week is just plain stupidity.

I had MMS and Tethering on my Sony Ericsson w810i 3 years ago on AT&T/Cingular!

Yet AT&T has to "turn on" these services for iPhones? iPhone is your bread and butter AT&T!!! You wouldn't have these new customers without it! Do you honestly think that people are on your network because of you?!?!?!?!? Take a step out of your ivory towers and take a nice deep breath of realism and realize that if you don't get your ***** together all of us are going to jump to either Verizon or T-Mobile when Apple is tired of your moronic ways.

[UniPro]

I'm still confused by this whole damn thing. My dad and I ordered our 3g's at the exact same time last year yet he's eligible for upgrade at the end of July while I'm not eligible till next march. WTF ATT!

[ThunderSkunk]

I was pretty gung-ho about a new iPhone. ...but at this point, I doubt I'll ever sign another AT&T contract again.

I wonder how it felt, to hear the entire audience outright laughing at the mere mention (& absence of mention!) of your companys name during Apples huge keynote event.

AT&T is an embarrassment and a bad company.

[AboveTheChaos]

Originally Posted by arainert

After a brief chat with AT&T, it seems as though they're doing the following:

- if you owned a 1st Gen and are upgrading to a 3Gs you qualify immediately
- if you owned a 3G and are upgrading to a 3Gs you will qualify 18 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of January 2010 dates)
- if you owned a 1st Gen AND a 3G, you will qualify 12 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of July ~13 dates)

This is very poorly communicated but looks to be the situation, which is a tiny bit better than I thought it was last night as they're not totally hosing their most loyal customers.

Can anyone else confirm?

a

I don't think this is correct. Me and my buddy both bough 1st Gen on day 1 and then got the 3G on day 1 and both of our accounts say we're not eligible until December.

[hr94131]

Originally Posted by Le Big Mac

Is there a delivery option? Because standing in line is very 1980s. Or Soviet Union.

Preorder iPhone from Apple website, I did that yesterday and it was easy to do, they even provide free 5day shipping.

[bytethese]

Originally Posted by arainert

After a brief chat with AT&T, it seems as though they're doing the following:

- if you owned a 1st Gen and are upgrading to a 3Gs you qualify immediately
- if you owned a 3G and are upgrading to a 3Gs you will qualify 18 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of January 2010 dates)
- if you owned a 1st Gen AND a 3G, you will qualify 12 months after your 3G purchase (hence a lot of July ~13 dates)

This is very poorly communicated but looks to be the situation, which is a tiny bit better than I thought it was last night as they're not totally hosing their most loyal customers.

Can anyone else confirm?

a

Regarding option 3 above, can you confirm this?

I checked my eligibility on Apple's website and it told me I was able to get a 3GS for $499 or that I qualify in Jan 2010. I owned 2 original iPhone's and 1 3G. I'd totally wait until July if option 3 was the case.

[phatcat]

I seriously doubt any crazy lines, and if there are, any the luster will subside by the following weekend. Plus I'd rather read about any new hardware problems on Apple's forum's than run out and buy it. I had a ton of bluetooth problems by switching to the 3G phone. There's lots of posts about it on Apple's forum.