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To confirm, you HAVE to activate in store now, and have to have a data plan?

W

Wolfpup

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Sep 7, 2006
2,948
117
Early on some people were activating at home, but I guess that was just because they were letting people take the phone home because the activation servers were down? I hate having random people stick their grubby hands over any of my tech, let alone an effectively multi-thiusand dollar piece of super-sexy Apple hardware :D

Aaaand there were some rumors early on that you weren't forced into a data plan this time, but I guess you are? That makes it a minimum of around $84 for the cheapest plan, or more than $100 to equal my effectively $50 plan I have now :(

Guess I'd get white, since it's supposed to not show scratches as much, and the extra $100 is nothing compared to what I'd be spending over the life of this thing. Probably won't, definitely shouldn't get this thing, but...
It's probably a good thing I can't just order from Apple.com as that would make it way too easy :D
 
Really!?! :) Do you know how? Are you able to just sign up for the cheapest voice plan or is it more involved than that?
 
You can remove the data plan if you get lucky and speak with a CSR that doesn't know what they're doing. But why? Why in the world would you want an iPhone 3G with NO DATA? That takes away the greatest features of the phone itself.
 
Darn, so it's just a luck of the draw fluke :(

And I'd want a phone without a data plan because I don't need a data plan, and can't justify the cost, and am sick of carrying THREE devices with me. An iPhone (or Treo, or SOMETHING) would let me consolidate at least two of my devices...except the iPhone is tied to a data plan, and all the smartphones with my current carrier require data plans too :mad:
 
Wolfpup said:
Darn, so it's just a luck of the draw fluke :(

And I'd want a phone without a data plan because I don't need a data plan, and can't justify the cost, and am sick of carrying THREE devices with me. An iPhone (or Treo, or SOMETHING) would let me consolidate at least two of my devices...except the iPhone is tied to a data plan, and all the smartphones with my current carrier require data plans too :mad:
Click to expand...

I talked to a CSR that did tell me that they were being told to still allow the data plan to be inactivated for the 2G, but not the 3G iPhone. However, they actually do have the ability to inactivate either one, and I've talked to one person who was able to convince them to cancel his 3G iPhone. So it is possible.
 
What about the other issue-is it possible to just sign a contract or whatever and walk out with an unopened box that you set up at home through iTunes? Or do they have to ruin the unboxing for you and lick it first before you get to use it :eek: :p
 
Wolfpup said:
What about the other issue-is it possible to just sign a contract or whatever and walk out with an unopened box that you set up at home through iTunes? Or do they have to ruin the unboxing for you and lick it first before you get to use it :eek: :p
Click to expand...

I did that at the apple store on monday so yea thats still possible.
 
Wolfpup said:
Darn, so it's just a luck of the draw fluke :(

And I'd want a phone without a data plan because I don't need a data plan, and can't justify the cost, and am sick of carrying THREE devices with me. An iPhone (or Treo, or SOMETHING) would let me consolidate at least two of my devices...except the iPhone is tied to a data plan, and all the smartphones with my current carrier require data plans too :mad:
Click to expand...

There are two reasons smartphones are being bundled with data plans:

-For people who use smartphones for email, it's far cheaper than paying per kb or monitoring your usage closely. As device manufacturers have noticed this, they've integrated more web offerings into their smartphones, and the demand for mobile web increases accordingly. At this point I can't think of any smartphone, except maybe the base Palm offerings like the Centro, that I'd WANT to use without a data plan, since you will lose many features and benefits from not having one.
-Carriers like the data plans because it's a predictable and high stream of income for the life of your contract.

If you're going to buy a smartphone, make sure you know what you're losing by not having a data plan. For some people an iPhone without a data plan is fine, for others it's a real problem. If you are around wifi all day it might not matter as much. But remember that smartphones evolved as information on the go devices, so they're very tightly integrated with mobile computing and data, so you're going to have to work to not use data on a smartphone.
 
question fear said:
There are two reasons smartphones are being bundled with data plans...
Click to expand...
Good advice, but ...

I won't be buying an iPhone until I can get it without the data plan. The main reason is simply I don't like to be cheated and the data plans in my area are a scam at best. I also don't like being forced to do business with a company that is outright deceptive and actively screws it's customers. (who would?)

People need to remember that unlike many phones, the iPhone has Wi-Fi and can be used fairly effectively without a data plan. Only if enough people purposely avoid being taken to the cleaners by the carriers, will you ever pay a reasonable, and fair price for data.

I shall wait to see if the new iPod has the same form and features as the 3G iPhone, but if it doesn't, I will either be looking on eBay for an unlocked iPhone or (if I can get the money together) I might actually take Apple to court over this. It would be a huge hardship for a poor citizen like myself, but IMO someone with the cash to buy the requisite justice should definitely take the legal road with this.

It's common sense that I should be allowed to buy a device that functions fine without a contract, ... without said contract. It's bundling otherwise and discriminatory as well in terms of the financial requirement. I think a legal challenge would certainly win, but perhaps ironically, one needs to be so well-heeled as to not *care* about the price, to be able to take the issue to court.
 
If you are in a city like San Francisco, you can find free wifi on almost every block. And if AT&T does end up (officially) letting iPhone users access their hotspots for free, every starbucks and mcdonalds will have free wifi too.

In that scenerio, I would definitely drop my 3G data plan.
 
30 bucks a month really that bad? That's like 3 restaurant meals that you would sacrifice by staying home and eating easy mac.
 
bigjnyc said:
I did that at the apple store on monday so yea thats still possible.
Click to expand...

Anyone know about AT&T stores? The nearest Apple store is at least 6 hours away :(

Virgil-TB2 said:
...
Click to expand...

Good points. The iPhone really can do about everything without a data plan (as can Palm's and many other "smartphones")-and even if it couldn't, it still has a lot of PDA and iPod functions that don't need that data plan at all. It's still (more or less) three devices without the data plan.

I'd love for the new Touch to incorporate an internal speaker and at least a few hardware buttons, so I can at least adjust volume and maybe play/pause without the touch screen. I *HATED* my iPod 3G's all touch interface, and it seems like the Touch would be even worse. Hardware buttons rock :)
 
yode said:
30 bucks a month really that bad? That's like 3 restaurant meals that you would sacrifice by staying home and eating easy mac.
Click to expand...

It's more like $36, and considering the iPhone would raises my (already outrageously expensive bill) by roughly $36-58 just to get close to what I have now, it's a big deal for me.
 
yode said:
30 bucks a month really that bad? That's like 3 restaurant meals that you would sacrifice by staying home and eating easy mac.
Click to expand...
It's not thirty though, that's just the advertised price.

My current cell phone costs me between $15 and $20 a month for basic voice services, (Virgin FTW!), and I have the iPod touch for the rest, which is free to use wherever there is Wi-Fi.

To convert to an iPhone (with Rogers in Canada), all I really gain is the ability to use data on the train and a couple of other places, and the price for this from Rogers, with taxes, fees, scams, etc. is roughly $110 a month.

That's more than four times the amount! :eek: It's just not worth it.

If the new touch has a camera and speakers, I won't be buying an iPhone at all.
 
How many minutes do you get with that plan? That's an awesome price (unfortunately...) Of course that's Canadian so not exactly comparable, but in USD I pay $40 (really $50) for 1000 anytime, nights and weekends starting at 7pm, and unlimited incoming. I'd have to pay over $100 to get 900 minutes and 9pm nights and weekends with the iPhone.

I don't actually use anywhere near the minutes I have, but I can't find a plan I can drop down to without losing too many minutes.
 
Virgil-TB2 said:
It's not thirty though, that's just the advertised price.

My current cell phone costs me between $15 and $20 a month for basic voice services, (Virgin FTW!), and I have the iPod touch for the rest, which is free to use wherever there is Wi-Fi.

To convert to an iPhone (with Rogers in Canada), all I really gain is the ability to use data on the train and a couple of other places, and the price for this from Rogers, with taxes, fees, scams, etc. is roughly $110 a month.

That's more than four times the amount! :eek: It's just not worth it.

If the new touch has a camera and speakers, I won't be buying an iPhone at all.
Click to expand...

Can't you add the 30 dollar 6GB plan to any voice plan?
 
Wolfpup said:
How many minutes do you get with that plan? That's an awesome price (unfortunately...) Of course that's Canadian so not exactly comparable, but in USD I pay $40 (really $50) for 1000 anytime, nights and weekends starting at 7pm, and unlimited incoming. I'd have to pay over $100 to get 900 minutes and 9pm nights and weekends with the iPhone.

I don't actually use anywhere near the minutes I have, but I can't find a plan I can drop down to without losing too many minutes.
Click to expand...
That's a pay as you go plan from Virgin. I don't use the phone much as I prefer email. The price reflects just how many calls I make and I don't make many calls.
 
yode said:
Can't you add the 30 dollar 6GB plan to any voice plan?
Click to expand...
Well the voice plan isn't from Rogers, it's from Virgin.

Even if I had the same deal with Rogers or Fido (it would be about ten bucks more expensive from either for the same service), it's not just the 30 dollar add-on. Again, that's just more deception from Rogers.

They try to trick you into buying by saying it's 30 dollars when it's actually 30 dollars plus hidden fees, plus non-hidden fees, plus tax, etc. etc. They also move all of the "iphone features" like texts, messaging, visual voicemail etc. into $15 "value packs" (when you hear "value pack" you *know* you are about to be screwed), so to get those you are tempted to add another 15 to 30 bucks.

The average "pre-iphone" voice plan from Rogers or Fido, plus the 30 dollar data package, is actually *more* expensive than the average plan created for the iPhone.
 
Virgil-TB2 said:
That's a pay as you go plan from Virgin. I don't use the phone much as I prefer email. The price reflects just how many calls I make and I don't make many calls.
Click to expand...

With pay as you go-don't you have to like "pre load" time onto the phone or something like that or it doesn't work? It's not like you actually have a certain cost per call is it? I'd love just a flat 10¢ per minute or something like that, where your bill could be $5 or $50 or whatever just depending on how much you use it (and you don't have to load time on or it quits working, etc.)
 
Virgil-TB2 said:
...it's actually 30 dollars plus hidden fees, plus non-hidden fees, plus tax, etc. etc.
Click to expand...

Ugh...yeah, I hate all that. I don't even know how much of that stuff is tax. In the States these companies seem to be passing on costs to us that LOOK like they're taxes but really aren't (on top of the taxes that are taxes). I was never able to get a straight answer from Verizon as to how much my new DSL line will cost after tax, so I'm just guessing it'll be 20% higher like my cell phone bill is.

And on that note, my new DSL line is *cheaper* than the data plan you're forced to get with an iPhone :eek:
If I was made of money, but...
 
You may be able to remove the data plan after the initial activation as some other people have pointed out. However, remember that by removing the data plan you are telling your carrier that you want to pay per use of the data network. This means that you will pay per kilobit use which can quickly add up. I dont think there is a way to tell the iPhone to not use data unless it is connected to a free wi-fi. You will end up having to make sure you do not sync email, browse, use some the apps, etc. Paying the $30 + tax may be easier.
 
downwardspiral said:
You may be able to remove the data plan after the initial activation as some other people have pointed out. However, remember that by removing the data plan you are telling your carrier that you want to pay per use of the data network. This means that you will pay per kilobit use which can quickly add up. I dont think there is a way to tell the iPhone to not use data unless it is connected to a free wi-fi. You will end up having to make sure you do not sync email, browse, use some the apps, etc. Paying the $30 + tax may be easier.
Click to expand...


This isn't true. When you deactivate the data plan you simply have no internet when not around WiFi. You need to tell the CSR to put you on the pay as you go plan to pay per KB.
 
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