Will you be able to unbox your own iPhone?

Update: As announced, the iPhone is to be activated with iTunes, in the comfort of your own home/office/local Starbucks. So much for the unboxing anxiety.

You've saved your pennies, and then thought better of the whole penny-centric strategy. You've moved on to cashing in your savings bonds. You've figured out which AT&T store is furthest off the beaten track. (Google Earth has a suggestion -- try Key West, FL.) You've considered the delicate balance between on-queue caffeine intake and the likelihood of line jumping when you dodge out to the restroom. You've planned, thought, considered, and strategized pretty much everything about getting your hands on that iPhone.

But have you considered whose hands will handle it before you do? Well, have you? Reader Chris Freitag, a fan of the Apple unboxing experience, had a panic attack earlier today and did the only reasonable thing. He told us about it.

A horrible, terrible thought crept into my head today as I fantasized about what it will be like to actually get to the counter of my local Apple Store the evening of June 29 and finally get my hands on my iPhone.

What if the first hands to touch *my* iPhone aren't my hands?

I've been a Cingular customer for over 3 years, and every single time I have purchased a new phone the customer service rep opens the box, removes all of the plastic wrapping from the phone, battery, and battery cover. They put the SIM card into the phone, power on the phone, then proceed to futz with the phone for a few minutes while they're setting it up. This has never been an issue for me because I have never had an attachment to the packaging nor to the product being opened. I like cool new phones but none of them have ever had much of an emotional impact on me.

Now compare that with Apple products. If you're as into Apple products as I am, then you understand what it means to come home with your shiny new Apple toy and open the packaging. The good folks at Apple always take such great care in packaging that it is a true joy to open the products. Everything about the presentation just leads you to that moment when you actually utter the word "whoa" as you finally get to the product you've lusted after for so long. It is without fail sleeker, smaller, slimmer, and sexier than any picture could convey. It's part of the Apple experience.

And if an AT&T employee unwraps all of that Apple-designed packaging goodness right in front of me, and then mauls my new iPhone with their grubby mitts, I'm going to lose it right there at the store.

Unfortunately, judging by comments on Erica's post, the contract and activation process will almost certainly involve hands-on time with store personnel. Unless Apple's magic mojo arrangement with AT&T includes online contract setup and number porting via iTunes (now that would be quite a trick) it looks like the first hands on your iPhone won't be yours.

Chris, we feel your pain.

Update: Some readers have suggested that buying the iPhone at an Apple Store will be a closed-box transaction; you would then have to take the iPhone to an AT&T store or activate over the air. We don't yet know for sure how any of this is going to work.

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Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2007/06/21/iphone-purchase-strategies/

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Analysis / Opinion iPhone

Update: As announced, the iPhone is to be activated with iTunes, in the comfort of your own home/office/local Starbucks. So much for the...

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Lewis

I've had a HORRIBLE experience with the iPhone. Last night I rushed to the Short Hills, NJ store to buy one...Got there at 10pm and the store was pretty much empty....bought one and was THRILLED...

Got home to set it up for my wife, and that's where the trouble began.

I followed the instructions and pluged the phone into the USB port on the side of my MacBook and...nothing...then...it synched as if it were just a plain IPod and not a phone...it didn't go through the phone activation procedures...sure it was cool and could surf the net on my wi-fi network, but no phone service...

So I call tech support and 3 HOURS LATER I made an appointment at the Apple Store's Genius bar...

Ok, I get there at 9:00 AM this morning and after an hour of futzing they give me a new model...great right?

Wrong!

The sim card in the phone can't synch with AT&T and I'm told I have to go to an AT&T store to deal with this issue...

I'm going back to the Apple store this afternoon to get ANOTHER phone and if this doesn't work I'll wait a couple months until they work the kinks out.

I'm a devoted Apple person but for $533 (including tax) this has been a totally awful experience.

June 30 2007 at 12:00 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Michael Spencer

"Are Mac users / iPhone fiends under the impression that Apple products are somehow constructed by beings from another planet?"

Yes.

June 27 2007 at 7:42 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Ian Adams

It looks like this is going to be a moot point: according to the updated iPhone site, you'll activate your account via iTunes.

June 26 2007 at 1:05 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Kevin

When I bought my Blackberry through Amazon, they sent me the phone in it's box, and I also got the SIM card in a plastic pop-out sheet. I did all the setup myself and it was activated over the air. I imagine this will work the same way.

June 25 2007 at 10:55 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

One more voice

Tom Green said - There is no sim card with an iPhone, fanboys should do their research!

At 55 seconds into the Guided Tour of the iPhone on Apple's website, you will see a picture of the top of the iPhone. Sure looks like a sim slot to me.

June 23 2007 at 4:02 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

artifex

Every time I buy a phone from Amazon (including when I switched to Cingular) I've had the phone in one box, and the SIM card outside it, etc.

June 23 2007 at 1:58 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Chris

@ Tom Green.

Fanboys know damn well there's a SIM card because during the Macworld 2007 keynote Steve clearly states that there's a tray for a SIM card. And would a fanboy miss such a thing? No.

But a disgruntled forum troll might.

June 22 2007 at 7:09 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Tom Green

There is no sim card with an iPhone, fanboys should do their research!

June 22 2007 at 5:50 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Jay

TUAW has reached impressive new lows. Way to go.

June 22 2007 at 4:44 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Joshua

I talked to a guy at the AT&T store in the Loop in Chicago last week - he also works part time at the Apple Store on Michigan.

He told me that Apple Stores WOULD have AT&T people on hand to handle account matters.

I've stopped in a few times asking for information on how they're going to be managing the launch, and that was the only visit that got me anything remotely useful. I expect mayhem at both locations.

June 22 2007 at 4:19 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply