Traded in my Palm Pre for an iPhone 3GS

[fury]

Yep. They don't give a crap because the 3GS is so hot right now they don't really need to make any effort to sell them. It sells itself and they're getting their commissions or their target monthly sales or whatever. The stores are getting small shipments in every week.

My next plan is to call all the AT&T stores on Tuesday afternoon that are on my route home (10 hour drive) to see who has one and try to convince the employee to keep one for me until the next morning. I'll just time my drive to be the first customer there in the morning.

Any other ideas out there that could help me get an iPhone?

Be careful about getting it from an AT&T store out of town. If you have a problem with it, you have to go back to THAT AT&T store to get it dealt with unless you take it to an Apple store or mail it to Apple.

I'd recommend getting it from an Apple store or the Apple online store rather than an AT&T store, based on my experience. Apple will tell you before they charge your card if you have to pay the full price, which is only the case if A) you already have AT&T service and it hasn't been at least 12 months since your last phone subsidy, or B) you don't want to activate AT&T service on it at the time of sale. If you're a new customer starting a new number or transferring from another carrier, they'll only charge the $199 or $299.

The online store will ship it straight to your place, whereas if you get it from the retail store, you can walk out the store with it activated and ready to use. You just gotta make sure it's in stock before you go. Apple stores get them in every day, as far as I know, so check every day early morning.

 

[AeroCare]

OK now that might be good news. I drive that route every other week so going back to any of those stores wouldn't be much of a problem.

Here's the problem : The phone I want to replace with the new iPhone was bought in April 2008 (let's call it Phone B) so it's been more than 12 months. The only problem is that I want to use another number I have with AT&T (Let's call this one Phone A). Phone A doesn't have a contract and is active right now with AT&T also.

I want to get the number currently on Phone A for my iPhone. It's simple but not so easy unless I do it at an AT&T store because AT&T uses the phone number and not the phone for each contract. Phone A has no contract and Phone B does so I want to replace the Phone B contract with the iPhone contract and terminate Phone A (but keep Phone A's number on the iPhone). In essense end up with only one iPhone with Phone A's number and terminate the other line.

Don't know if an Apple Store has that kind of access to AT&T.

 

[Swagger]

Yep. They don't give a crap because the 3GS is so hot right now they don't really need to make any effort to sell them. It sells itself and they're getting their commissions or their target monthly sales or whatever. The stores are getting small shipments in every week.

My next plan is to call all the AT&T stores on Tuesday afternoon that are on my route home (10 hour drive) to see who has one and try to convince the employee to keep one for me until the next morning. I'll just time my drive to be the first customer there in the morning.

Any other ideas out there that could help me get an iPhone?

Aero,
Your best bet if you travel frequently is to buy your iPhone from Best Buy. There may not be an Apple or AT&T store everywhere but Best Buy is. Also Best Buy buys in much larger volume than AT&T and will most likely have whatever color and GB size you want. I'm not a huge Best Buy fan because of their needless "up sale" practices (to the unknowing) but in this case I would purchase from them. Mark

 

[AeroCare]

Buying the phone doesn't seem like the big problem anymore because the Apple Store has them and it's on my route home. It's more about the number switch and I think only an AT&T store can do that. Apple and Best Buy probably have the same options to activate it than you can find online where it only asks you if you want a new number or you have one already. That won't help my switch problem. I'm sure that in person I can convince someone at a store to make this switch quickly. It's not the same to do something over the phone than it is in person where I'm standing right in front of them. It'll be easier to explain and I can be sure I walk out of the store with everything working correctly.

 

[Swagger]

Buying the phone doesn't seem like the big problem anymore because the Apple Store has them and it's on my route home. It's more about the number switch and I think only an AT&T store can do that. Apple and Best Buy probably have the same options to activate it than you can find online where it only asks you if you want a new number or you have one already. That won't help my switch problem. I'm sure that in person I can convince someone at a store to make this switch quickly. It's not the same to do something over the phone than it is in person where I'm standing right in front of them. It'll be easier to explain and I can be sure I walk out of the store with everything working correctly.

All it takes is Apple or Best Buy calling AT&T's activation dept. if you want something done out of the ordinary. As a matter of fact Best Buy's mobile phone dept. (which is owned by Carphone Warehouse and not Best Buy) has FULL access to your AT&T account. Mark

 

[AeroCare]

I did not know that! I'm going to call Best Buy right now.

 

[AeroCare]

Thanks for the suggestion Mark, just got off the phone with Best Buy. It was a bust for my situation though. I'm going to have to wait until Wednesday and see if I can find an AT&T Store to make this work the way I need it.

 

[AeroCare]

You were correct in that they can do everything but only up to the point of switching numbers. That's where they stop.

 

[Swagger]

You were correct in that they can do everything but only up to the point of switching numbers. That's where they stop.

Believe me you do not have to wait. Best Buy will work out whatever you need to sale you a phone that includes the number change. I have bought enough phones from BB to know. You get a different response on the phone than in person. Just go to Best Buy and you will walk out with an iPhone trust me. Mark

 

[AeroCare]

OK. There are few on my route home on Wednesday.

 

[Swagger]

Who said the Palm Pre's camera was sub par? Sure not like my Nikon's but for a phone/PDA I'd say it's pretty good. Markkk