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It’s been confirmed that in order to purchase an Apple iPhone you’ll need a new 2 year contract alongside the phone. You can’t purchase the device outright and hook your SIM into it. No, that would be far too easy and would cause AT&T to lose some extra dough for every phone sold. However, you may be able to snag an iPhone sans contract but it all depends where you shop.

First off, a previous mentioned story of stores only receiving a couple dozen iPhones at launch is holding some merit and this story confirming iPhones shortages which claims it was due to the overall cost of purchasing it is no longer true, there will be shortages but not due to a lack of customer awareness, in fact it’s the other way around. In short it will be utter hell trying to get an iPhone the very day it arrives.

The bigger problem is all the red tape you have to go through but it all depends on where you go. Still a little freaked out about having to purchase a 2 year plan I decided… more...

News is coming from AT&T that, in preparation of the iphone launch, they are optimizing their 2.5G EDGE network. Does that mean they are putting on new rims and TV screens in the bumpers? No pimping out their rides. They are, rather, dropping new T1 lines in underperforming towers in hopes to upping the minimum performance across their network to a minimum of 80kbps.

As reported by Gizmodo via AppleInsider:

According to the report, existing limitations and bottlenecks on the AT&T EDGE network stem not from protocols but rather the network’s data backend and the way the towers are configured to allocate bandwidth to data and calls.

The launch of the iPhone will no doubt bring new customers to AT&T. I’m one of them. So it’s no surprise that they are not taking any chances when it comes to making sure their network can maximize the full capabilities of the iPhone.

This initiative, dubbed “Operation: Fine EDGE” is due to finish 2 weeks before the launch on June 29th.

[Via AppleInsider]

And you thought 100 iPhones per store at launch was bad! Apparently, in my calculations last week, I left out one important detail in my calculations. I assumed that all 300,000 iPhones would be available on launch day. But according to The Apple Press, 50,000-75,000 units will be available June 29th, with the remaining slowly rolling out weekly after that.

This brings the grand total to 28 iPhones (on average) per storefront. Maybe that’s why I’m not a mathematician.

[Via The Apple Press]

This will probably go down in history as the only time Steve Jobs will tell you to avoid an Apple Store but as retold by Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post:

Talking to Steve Jobs after his speech, I got a hot tip on how to be one of the first people to score a new iPhone when they go on sale in June. “Don’t go to an Apple store,” Jobs told me. “It will be a madhouse there. People will be lined up around the block, sleeping on the sidewalk to get one. Go to an AT&T/Cingular store. Most people don’t know that they will be selling them too.” Uh, they do now, Steve.

So I decided to go the extra mile and uh…anonymously call my local AT&T store. When I asked if I would be better off going to their store rather than the Apple Store on June 29th, I received the following response: “Whatever you want, Sir.” Always on their toes, those AT&T employees!

[Via The Huffington Post]

One of the most convenient features of the iPod is the fact that although it syncs up with your computer through iTunes (allowing for transfer of music, movies, TV Shows, Pictures, and Podcasts) it also shows up on your Mac or PC as an external drive allowing for data transfer ontot he iPod as a portable hard drive.

What works for the iPod apparently is not the same for the iPhone. Chris Davies of SlashGear is reporting that the iPhone will only sync through iTunes or iPhoto.

This move is no doubt a move by Apple to encourage content purchases via the iTunes store and syncing it with the iPhone but as Davies writes: “That should increase ease of use for novice owners, but likely frustrate everyone else.”

[Via SlashGear]

It appears the hype on the iPhone is getting too hot for some Apple execs. In a New York Times article, via Engadget comes the following quote:

The anticipation, which is intense even by Jobsian standards, has led to some quiet, behind-the-scenes anxiety at Apple. Some Apple executives worry privately that expectations for the one-button phones may be too high and that first-generation buyers will end up disappointed.

Well, this seems like a no-brainer quote from Apple. With the coverage of the iPhone the way it is today, there is simply no way, a first generation device can live up to the hype. But Apple execs should not be worried about the first-generation buyers. The reason is simple: First-generation buyers will fall into 2 categories: the die-hard Apple fanboys and gadget hounds who have money to burn.

Both of these groups, although opinionated, would not jump the Apple bandwagon because of a few bugs. After all, Apple fanboys are still putting up with a buggy Mighty Mouse! They still supported Apple after the misfire otherwise known as the Dalmation iMac. And they still bow to the power of Steve Jobs after singing their leghairs off from faulty Powerbook… more...

So we finally have a release date here in the US. It still doesn’t mean everyone that wants an iPhone at launch will be able to get their hands on one. What do you think is your best bet to get an iPhone at launch?

Merrill Lynch analysts today reports that although market expectations are higher, Apple will only ship 4 million iPhones this year. This is way lower than what all indications point to as initial launch demand for the phone. But to me, the most troubling news is this:

“The report indicates that monthly shipments will initially total 200,000-300,000 and ramp to about one million units by the end of the year,” McManus reports.

If previous information was correct, and there will be approximately 2000 storefronts selling the iPhone, then we may have a problem. First some quick math:

If you take the initial shipment of 300,000 iPhones and divide them equally amongst the 2000 stores, you will have an average of 150 iPhones per store.

But that doesn’t consider the amount of iPhones reserved for purchase online at Apple.com and Cingular.com. How many units do you think would be set aside for online sales? I would guess a third. Let’s say 100,000 out of the 300,000 iPhones are reserved for online sales. That would mean that on average, only 100 iPhones will be available per… more...

Think you are all set when the iPhone comes out because you got on a waiting list? Think again. We have received reports of AT&T stores ditching their waiting lists and not alerting the people previously on them.

A tipster in Tennessee wrote to iPhone Matters that when he inquired at his local AT&T store about a waiting list, he was met with the following response:

“We did, but it got too long” “Basically, it’s now first come, first served.”

Call practically any AT&T store these days, and despite a dictate from corporate forbidding waiting lists, you will probably find one to put your name on. I followed up and called my local AT&T branch and was met with a similar answer:

Me: Is there a waiting list for the iPhone I can get on?
Barry from AT&T: There used to be, but not any more.
Me: Why not?
Barry: We had a list of some 200 people and we knew we wouldn’t have enough at this branch and definitely don’t have the time to check names on the list so we ditched it.

So if you think you are… more...

And yet another one to add to the rumour mill, how many is that now?

According to Techwhack, Apple and Google are working together to provide pre-loaded Google tools on the iPhone. The source for this rumour is, once again, AT&T as their main guy, Glenn Lurie, has suggested that some Google products will be arriving on the iPhone when it’s launched later next month. He also stated that the touch screen is “like nothing you’ve ever used” with a browsing environment that is “incredible”.

It’ll be interesting to see which Google tools make it onto the iPhone, but apart from Google Maps I’m going for Blogger, YouTube and Translate. What ‘tools’ do the readers of iPhone Matters think Google could provide for the iPhone next month? If you need a bit of help, check out Google’s product page.