Bought Iphone 3GS on 5/16/10 - Am I Safe?

S

supervelous

macrumors 6502
Hi All,

I was waiting patiently for the next gen Iphone which should be announced on June 7th. I had been eligible for upgrade on my line since December 2009 and had the Iphone 3G.

However, an unexpected situation came up in which my GF got her phone stolen (an Iphone 3GS) on May 15th. On May 16th I went to ATT and Apple with her to check on her options, and to get a new 3GS it would cost her $599.

Now, she is a single mom with a kid who has autism, who waits tables for not too much money - I figured I'd help her out by using my upgrade to 3GS, letting her use my Iphone 3G while we explore her options for a new Iphone (likely buying off Ebay or CL or from a friend of mine who might be willing to sell).

An Apple store employee told me that I had 30 days to return my 3GS, and that once returning it might take a couple days but I WOULD regain my upgrade eligibility and be able to purchase a Iphone 4 or HD or whatever the new one is going to be called. Or, if the new one won't be out until July or later than my 30 days, I was going to just use my 3G again until then.

Is this a safe strategy, besides the obvious chance of breaking or losing the 3GS before then? I know the safer strategy would have been to wait, but I really wanted to help my GF out.

If worse comes to worse, I have another line due for an upgrade August 25th.

Thanks!
 
supervelous said:
Hi All,

I was waiting patiently for the next gen Iphone which should be announced on June 7th. I had been eligible for upgrade on my line since December 2009 and had the Iphone 3G.

However, an unexpected situation came up in which my GF got her phone stolen (an Iphone 3GS) on May 15th. On May 16th I went to ATT and Apple with her to check on her options, and to get a new 3GS it would cost her $599.

Now, she is a single mom with a kid who has autism, who waits tables for not too much money - I figured I'd help her out by using my upgrade to 3GS, letting her use my Iphone 3G while we explore her options for a new Iphone (likely buying off Ebay or CL or from a friend of mine who might be willing to sell).

An Apple store employee told me that I had 30 days to return my 3GS, and that once returning it might take a couple days but I WOULD regain my upgrade eligibility and be able to purchase a Iphone 4 or HD or whatever the new one is going to be called. Or, if the new one won't be out until July or later than my 30 days, I was going to just use my 3G again until then.

Is this a safe strategy, besides the obvious chance of breaking or losing the 3GS before then? I know the safer strategy would have been to wait, but I really wanted to help my GF out.

If worse comes to worse, I have another line due for an upgrade August 25th.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

No matter how brilliant she is, there's not a necessary reason to have an iPhone, she or even you can make do with a cheap phone for a month...
 
SAD*FACED*CLOWN said:
if you just bought an iPhone this year AT&T and/or Apple will make you pay through the nose to upgrade....
Click to expand...


I don't mean to be rude, but did you read my post?

I'd be returning the Iphone I bought only 2 weeks ago. I understand if I am mid-contract I will "pay through the nose". I was told by Apple & AT&T store employees if I return my phone within the return window my upgrade eligibility would be reset and I would get the lower subsidized prices.

I was posting here to see if anyone has heard differently or if there is a potential issue I am not seeing.

If you have some info and that's why you are saying that, please provide to backup your statement. Thanks.
 
Your kinda Pushin it, your assuming the 4g will come out before the 16th of June. If it doesn't you'll have to take back the 3gs and be without a phone for a short period of time.
 
supervelous said:
I don't mean to be rude, but did you read my post?

I'd be returning the Iphone I bought only 2 weeks ago. I understand if I am mid-contract I will "pay through the nose". I was told by Apple & AT&T store employees if I return my phone within the return window my upgrade eligibility would be reset and I would get the lower subsidized prices.

I was posting here to see if anyone has heard differently or if there is a potential issue I am not seeing.

If you have some info and that's why you are saying that, please provide to backup your statement. Thanks.
Click to expand...

yes I read it...did you read my response? and as someone mentioned after my post you're assuming to know when the new iPhone will be availiable for retail....it's a crapshoot...bring it back NOW and wait it out with a go phone
 
I am not saying she should have an iphone, I wasn't with her when she got it maybe she was doing better at that time.

Anyways, I am covered even if the Iphone doesn't come out before June 16th, because I am taking my Iphone 3G back from her when I return the 3GS, I am just lending it to her as a temporary solution while she tries to figure out what to do.

She really loves her iphone, it seems like her only break from everything, I really don't see her spending money on anything else but regardless I'm not going to judge her.

Even if I don't get the 3G back from her I have a blackberry I used to use which I could temporarily use in the meantime. My only danger is if I break this phone or lose it, or if I am being told the wrong thing by Apple & ATT store employees or there's some other clause/loophole I am not seeing.
 
Just make sure you keep that sucker in a case and in mint condition until you return it. Also hopefully you got the employees card or name in case they try to tell you something differently from what he told you.
 
supervelous said:
Even if I don't get the 3G back from her I have a blackberry I used to use which I could temporarily use in the meantime. My only danger is if I break this phone or lose it, or if I am being told the wrong thing by Apple & ATT store employees or there's some other clause/loophole I am not seeing.
Click to expand...

Why did you not give (loan) her the bb in the first place, keep your iPhone, and upgrade when the new one's released? This scenerio avoids the concern with returning the phone on time and the obvious ethical issue of buying a phone with the intent of using it for a month and returning it for a full refund. Or did I miss something? I'm a new poster/long time lurker, but there may be more back story I missed somewhere. :)
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7E18 Safari/528.16)

supervelous, as long as you return the phone that you bought before the 30 day return period is up, you will be able to upgrade again.
 
as far as returning the iPhone you might be charged the 10% restocking fee like someone else said here. So you will be spending a little more money. Just make sure you keep the phone in great condition and all should be good. Make sure you get someones name that told you the information just in case something does turn when you try and return it.
 
This is exactly why I don't want kids- I want to do with my money as I please without people judging me. I hate the idea that when a person has kids, everything else takes a back seat, even your spouse. Maybe the chick doesn't go out to movies, or have nights out, maybe she uses her entertainment budget on her iPhone. I doubt it, but its possible. In any case, people shouldn't be judging unless they have their kids in the best schools with complete college funds and zero debts to their name.

Anyway OP, Give it another week and then return the phone. I would make sure it's returned before WWDC. If you don't already have a spare dumb phone then borrow or buy a go phone to use for the last couple of weeks. Knowing ATT, it wouldn't be as simple as return phone -->get new 4g/HD. You'll probably have to wait for your upgrade status to be corrected, and I would bet that it will take longer than they tell you.
 
you are safe till WWDC at that time they will also announce the 4Gen release date. then you can decide what to do. but there will be a 10% restocking fee per Apple I say that since Apple is the only device that has a restocking fee.
 
Update

Update to those of you who may be in the same boat, bought a 3GS and returning it waiting for Iphone 4.

I returned my Iphone 3GS purchased on 5/16/10 yesterday around 1pm and Apple did NOT charge a restocking fee, and it took a day but my upgrade is now restored, confirmed with customer service and dialing *639# I get the message "As a valued customer, we can offer you an upgrade with a new 2-yr commitment and waive the $18 upgrade fee".

In fact, this seems to have improved my status as before it was saying I had to pay the $18 upgrade fee!!

Can't wait!!
 
Thats the same thing the AT&T rep told me. I purchased my 3GS on the 7th of June because I didnt have $50~ for the 4G, but now that I got paid, they said I can return it and my upgrade would be reverted back for the 4G for $200.

They did say I had to pay restocking but its only $15.

My only thing is I need a phone, and I'd hate to hog my moms for 2 more weeks (i need it in case I get called in for work). So I was going to hang onto mines until thw 22nd or so, but my mom barely uses her phone so well see what happens.

I cant do anything until the bank opens tomorrow anyways.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Back
Top