iPhone Returns and Cancellation Policies

FYI- I used the iPhone for 13 days and decided to return it because of bad reception with AT&T. When returning it back at the Apple store, I told them the reason was not with the iPhone but with AT&T. They didn't charge me the 10% restocking fee.

Okay, I really do not care for At&T, so I called up and asked if I wanted to sign up for service and cancel within 3 days. Will the Iphone remained unlocked and the rep said "YES". It will be a pain and hassle, but its worth it to use the Wifi and ipod.

sorry took forever for my comment to be posted, I see this concern was already addressed

Mark, that's a good point. I'm sure they'd take it back (as you are 'unsatisfied') but probably charge you restocking fees.

Of course, the best way to get around this is to check the coverage out by finding a buddy who has AT&T/Cingular and giving your locales the once over. In my experience (living in Houston and Austin, TX) I've never once not had service with any of my AT&T/Cingular phones.

What happens if I get home or to the office and the coverage stinks. Will people still be charged a restocking fee if they "have" to return the phone since the coverage is not acceptable for everyday use?

Watching the activation video, it stuck me that during the iTunes activation wizard (after you plug in your phone to your PC), you are presented with the TOS from both AT&T and Apple. Are you forced to pay the fee if you decide that you do not agree with the Terms of Service? I ask since you are not shown the TOS until you plug in the device.

My issue is completely different. when i moved into my new house last year I was forced to cancel Cingular and get Verizon because I could not get a signal here. All of my friends and family are on Verizon as well so I can't even try and borrow one of their phones to test with. I am encouraged by AT&T's coverage map which should in theory mean I will have a good signal BUT what happens when I get home and the Iphone has so signal at my house, should I be forced to pay the 10% restocking fee? I work from home so cell reception is critical.

Actually, Erica, it's funny you should point that out (#18). Got a story for you, like to hear it, here it go:

My only concern about the credit check is because, when I was 18 (1994), I had an account with Cellular One (which ultimately became Cingular). I set up my cell phone to forward to my land line whenever I wasn't out-and-about, after checking with a CO customer service rep to ask if I'd be charged for that...to which, they answered me "no, you won't be charged for that."

Skip to the punchline, when my bill came at the end of the month, in the amount of $600+ whole american dollars. I called CellOne to put a voice to my "WTF," at which time they told me that I was billed for every single minute I was on my land line, since it supposedly DOES use a cell tower for the duration of the call if it was forwarded. I was aghast, I refused to pay it, screamed at many a service rep and their superiors, and eventually got nowhere. Being the stupid kid that I was, I did the rough equivalent of standing there with my arms folded, until my credit report had a nice big black mark on it. Stupid. Three years ago, I finally paid off the collection agency that bought the account from Cingular. But, several years before that, I went into a Cingular store to try and get a Moto V90 (when they were new and cool), and I was turned down at the credit check stage because I still had that black mark from my Cellular One past.

So anyway...real-world scenario to go with that clause. Fun. I'm hoping my new, cleaner credit report will be good enough for AT&T. I doubt it'll be a problem, but ehhh....

Actually, following-up to that boilerplate thing, check out what the agreement says about conference calling under "unlimited voice". It'll give you a few laughs.Here's the ref: http://www.tuaw.com/gallery/license-agreement-2-atandt/289092/

Mark: It's unclear. A lot of the legal stuff is meaningless boilerplate. I think that refers to when the phone is included as a "freebie" or heavily discounted in the sale of the plan.