Upgrading to AT&T Next - Can you go to an Apple store?

[rye9]

This NEXT thing is a mess. At 4am on preorder. I got three phones but upon checkout it refused to do NEXT because I am in NY and I said "WTF". Why is this always so difficult. So I bought the 3 iPhones at all different rates 299/549/749.I called my apple store where I am picking them up at and they had no clue what I was talking about. I told them what happened and they said I should "think things through a little better" (which was slightly annoying). I told him how I was told previous years by an Apple Rep that the important thing is that you have a phone for pick up and then they can clean up the plans on site. He said there would be AT&T reps on site to look at potential issues but the odds are they are all going to have to be returned since New York State does not have NEXT. I don't want to pay $1700 up front for phones so they will go back if no one can use common sense.

As one who has a billing address in NY I also understand the frustration you went through. Through calling apple and AT&T many times last weekend, this is the story: AT&T next is available in NY, but phones on this plan must be purchased via at&t. Apple stores (online AND physical stores) cannot process AT&T next orders for customers with billing addresses in NY, DC, or. WY.

Personally I think it's bull that that's the case number one, and number two that this wasn't made clear ahead of time by any stretch. I wouldn't have woken up at 3 am to preorder via apple, to find out the next day I can't complete the order. By this point the att preorders were 3 weeks to ship, so I'll be trying my luck at AT&T stores Friday.

At least best buy has the courtesy on their site when purchasing iPhones to tell you before you even get to the ordering page that these locations (NY WY DC) don't support AT&T next. Although that in itself is misleading because it simply says that next isn't available in these locations, which isn't entirely true because as I said, AT&T can do next phone purchases through themselves, it's just that best buy can't do it or any reseller.

 

[eastamherstbias]

As one who has a billing address in NY I also understand the frustration you went through. Through calling apple and AT&T many times last weekend, this is the story: AT&T next is available in NY, but phones on this plan must be purchased via at&t. Apple stores (online AND physical stores) cannot process AT&T next orders for customers with billing addresses in NY, DC, or. WY.

Personally I think it's bull that that's the case number one, and number two that this wasn't made clear ahead of time by any stretch. I wouldn't have woken up at 3 am to preorder via apple, to find out the next day I can't complete the order. By this point the att preorders were 3 weeks to ship, so I'll be trying my luck at AT&T stores Friday.

At least best buy has the courtesy on their site when purchasing iPhones to tell you before you even get to the ordering page that these locations (NY WY DC) don't support AT&T next. Although that in itself is misleading because it simply says that next isn't available in these locations, which isn't entirely true because as I said, AT&T can do next phone purchases through themselves, it's just that best buy can't do it or any reseller.

That is why hopefully with apple having an ATT rep in the apple store they can make the fix. Otherwise I will need to head to att to place the order and I will get my phones sometime in December even though I had them in my hands.