Source: Tom's Guide | Keywords: iphone, 3g, review | Themes: Smartphones
- 1. An iPhone Noob's Report: The Line
- 2. An iPhone Noob's Report: The In-Store Setup
1. An iPhone Noob's Report: The Line
Think you’ve been waiting a long time for the second-generation iPhone? Get in line. I’ve been waiting for it since before the first-generation iPhone was announced. Saddled with a Sprint contract, a Treo and at times a Blackberry, I pined for an iPhone but knew it would be impractical to ditch my carrier and two functional smartphones while they still in decent condition, and while the iPhone was so expensive and unproven.
So I waited, filled with jealousy each time I saw someone caress a new iPhone. As the months progressed, my Treo faced every possible malady and dysfunction, but I was determined to make it last until the second-gen iPhone showed up. Finally, my day is here! More than a year and a half after I first began my wait, I got in line at an Apple Store in Los Angeles at 4:30 a.m., all ready to take home my new, long-awaited, bundle of joy.
When 8 a.m. came and went, all 350 people in line knew something was up. And whatever it was wasn’t good. Strangely, the entire staff of the Apple store skipped outside towards the people in line and performed a very loud, raucous cheer.
Then, they promptly went away again. Then, one representative came forward and said, “Just want to let you all know that we are having technical difficulties and there will be a delay before we can begin selling phones.”
Groan.
Why cheer when you only have bad news to report to an already anxious crowd?
According to early Web reports, the iTunes activation servers were down, and those servers were managed by AT&T. Eventually, the Apple store began taking customers but warned that malfunctions and errors abounded and that none of us should have our hopes up for a working phone.
- Next page An iPhone Noob's Report: The In-Store...
It's not just new phone activation that buggered up... I've tried periodically to get the 2.0 Firmware update for my Touch, but without success.
It looks like the Apple store is not dealing with the load very well - maybe they should be running Windows Servers. ;-P
I'm glad none of this insanity is bothering me - happy pocket pc user since 2004, and lovin it!
wow both you previous commenters are retarded theres no way any pc product could ever come close to apple. you know why there are problems? because the iphone is so dope that so many people are trying to get them that it can't all be processed all at once. i have never seen any kind of hype like this for a pc product, not only that but they have way more problems in the long run
wow both you previous commenters are retarded theres no way any pc product could ever come close to apple.
They don't need to, Apple comes to them. Anyone remember the Leopard BSOD fiasco?
"FamilyTalk plans that share minutes between an iPhone 3G and another phone are not possible".
You can have an iPhone and any other phone (GSM) on an AT&T Family Plan and share minutes. I have been on this exact plan for over a year and I'm now on it for another 2 yrs.
This is nothing new, remember Mozilla with their download day? They should've prepared for the clusterf***k their servers were going to get, but of course they didn't. Now Apple is doing the same thing. (d'oh)
"FamilyTalk plans that share minutes between an iPhone 3G and another phone are not possible".You can have an iPhone and any other phone (GSM) on an AT&T Family Plan and share minutes. I have been on this exact plan for over a year and I'm now on it for another 2 yrs.
Hi Offcamber,
Thanks for your comment. Can you clarify whether you have an iPhone or an iPhone 3G? First-gen iPhones aren't limited to the new iPhone AT&T plans, so those phones, as long as they pay for data, can share minutes with an existing family plan. The iPhone 3G cannot. Has this been your experience?
Rachel Rosmarin, Editor of Tom's Guide
"YAAAAA..WOOOOO!...APPLE APPLE APPLE!..sorry we are having difficulties"
One of the most lamest releases I have ever heard. And before anybody starts going apple on me, it should not matter to the customer whether apple or at&t is at fault. Still a bad experience.
We wait till the next shipment ..
wow both you previous commenters are retarded theres no way any pc product could ever come close to apple. you know why there are problems? because the iphone is so dope that so many people are trying to get them that it can't all be processed all at once. i have never seen any kind of hype like this for a pc product, not only that but they have way more problems in the long run
Wow you are an idiot Apple fanboy/Isheep. The misconception that Mac has less problems and errors than Windows is totally fake and is a lie of marketing. Add to this the fact that all of my respect for Apple has gone out of the window thanks to their stubborn support of a device's appearance rather than its performance makes me want to SCREAM. I am a long time lover of the Macbook Pro, but I want throw up everytime I see a Macbook Air!! You sir as well as apple have created one hell of an epic fail. That said I will be getting an Apple Iphone 3G later, and it will most likely be my last Apple product.
The sad part about this is leaving a carrier (Sprint) with the second best voice coverage/reliability and the best and fastet data coverage in the country, to go to ATT who is a distant third in both. In addition, you will now be paying more per month to AT&T for this worse network. Though I love the Iphone, I would much rather spend a hell of a lot less on a Sprint Instinct and a Simply Everything plan, then be forced on to the AT&T network. I have used both devices and depending on the features you use, I would rate them about equal.
pcsucksdick
"wow both you previous commenters are retarded theres no way any pc product could ever come close to apple. you know why there are problems? because the iphone is so dope that so many people are trying to get them that it can't all be processed all at once. i have never seen any kind of hype like this for a pc product, not only that but they have way more problems in the long run"
Win95 sold more units in 1 hour than the iphone has sold in a year. Same with the wii, PS3, 360 etc... and no problems activating accounts the days those came out. I guess Apple really can't do things better than a PC. Oops!!!
Unfortunately, I think the Apple employee led you in the wrong direction about a 3G iPhone on a family plan with non-iPhones. I have a friend that has a 3G iPhone and is part of a family plan with other non-iPhones. I also went to an ATT store and inquired about this and they said it's quite possible to have a 3G iPhone with other phones. Go back and demand you be changed for no charge!!!!
Unfortunately, I think the Apple employee led you in the wrong direction about a 3G iPhone on a family plan with non-iPhones. I have a friend that has a 3G iPhone and is part of a family plan with other non-iPhones. I also went to an ATT store and inquired about this and they said it's quite possible to have a 3G iPhone with other phones. Go back and demand you be changed for no charge!!!!
Unfortunately, I think the Apple employee led you in the wrong direction about a 3G iPhone on a family plan with non-iPhones. I have a friend that has a 3G iPhone and is part of a family plan with other non-iPhones. I also went to an ATT store and inquired about this and they said it's quite possible to have a 3G iPhone with other phones. Go back and demand you be changed for no charge!!!!