It does look sexy. Off Topic, but the UK version is *free* with an 18 month contract (This is pretty standard for mobile phones, but for various reasons I'm disappointed that Apple have gone down this path).

The good news is that I can upgrade my iPhone to the 3G iPhone for (basically) an extra 9 months on my existing contract. That's still £300.00 extra, but I'm OK with that.

≡ Click to see image ≡

After some digging, I found AT&T's press release regarding the iPhone 3G, and it said:

Unlimited iPhone 3G data plans for consumers will be available for $30 a month, in addition to voice plans starting at $39.99 a month.

If it's actually going to cost a minimum of $70/mo to operate this thing, that's a dealbreaker...

Closer to $100 a month is what I've heard and that's for the old one. But hell, I pay almost that for my stupid Sprint service and the shitty DarthPhone.

How much was the old iPhone data plan? Like $60/month? So this is $10 more per month, but the phone is $200 cheaper? That means $40 more over the life of the phone versus the last iPhone, or $1.67/month. For 3G? Sounds like a better deal. And you probably end up ahead when you factor in the time value of money.

There's a thread on the blue. Might have some more info - tl;dr.

I don't care - I want one. Apple recently announced that the iPhone would be available here in July and I nearly wet myself with excitement. Still waiting on cost details, though ...

Like the UK, mobile phones here are generally free if you sign a contract, but that's not always the case with the cutting-edge models;-) Given that Australia has the highest per-capita use of mobile phones in the world (I believe), I guess it won't be long before I can afford one.

*crosses fingers*

I've had it since day one and love it. I HATED having to sign up with ATT to use it but frankly haven't had any technical problems or reasons to call 611. Until last weekend when I got my bill. In April I went to Mexico and goofed off at the airports and pretty much used it like I was at home. I knew they charge an assload for international roaming but I seemed to be in control. So in May I got a bill for $250 for the data roaming. Huge, overpriced but I was being stupid and not seeking out wifi. Then on Saturday I get my June bill and there's $300 more. I couldnt believe it (nor afford it) so I called and complained. She took $275 off. Still an expensive lesson: disable international roaming. If you need it AT&T sells plans for frequent travelers. Or unlock it and use a local prepaid if available.

So AT&T is evil but manageable and did credit my account to try and make me happy.

The phone itself is great (I'm using it now). Getting email and a great browser anywhere rules. I'm getting the 3g version next month. That means 2 more years with AT&T. But as long as I don't international roam I should be fine. Note that international calling and roaming are turned off by default and you have to call AT&T to have it activated. They actually do a credit check ( I had mine turned on two days after becoming a customer and they ran my credit again as if in two days there would be a change) with the exception of the Mexico trip, I've traveled a lot internationally and so had it added.

Details on the rate plans will be at AT&T. They've already said youll need to get a 2 year plan with voice (which starts at 40 for 400 min with rollover) and data which is all you can eat for $30 (10 more than I'm paying today for edge). The 199/299 phones will be for new customers, any iPhone 1 customer and existing customers eligible for an upgrade.

When I'm not being stupid in Mexico my bill comes to 85 or so dollars. I added more SMS messages to my plan and then there is all those state local and federal taxes. I figure my bill will run just over $100 when I get the new phone. But I did disconnect my AT&T local landline which was $35 a month.

It will be interesting to see if they add prepaid plans or lower voice minutes. Right now the plan has free mobile to mobile (AT&T only) and free weekends so I don't come close to using 400 minutes a month.

I love mine too, and everything I've posted this last 5 days has been from it. it's a great device for browsing.
birdherder: I hope that you're accessing metachat via lofi.metachat.org

In all honesty, I've had Verizon, Sprint, and Cingular (now AT&T), and AT&T is the best of the bunch. They've never screwed up my bill royally, when there were errors they fixed them, and when someone shady decided to add all the "extra" services to my plan (like roadside assistance and so on), they were removed, credited, and we were given additional credits for half a month free as an apology.

International calls ARE insane, though. but the international plan isn't that bad. A friend of mine lives in Niagara Falls and has it. (she has to, just driving around there she can jump between their towers and ones just over the border).

lofi.mecha is awesome. I was going to ask matthowie about where they are with a mobile version of metafilter.

Here is what I hate about AT&T international roaming. With a plan, I would pay $60 for the amount of data I used. Without a plan they charge $600. It isn't like the phone company sent them a bill for that much. And they would bill another amount if they knew I had a calling plan? They probably jacked up the price and billed AT&T $20.

That said, the iPhone is still the greatest thing since sliced bread.

$70 a month is what I'm paying for the bog-standard Verizon phone I never use. I'd drop the $200 and keep the same monthly rate to have a pocket computer I actually got use out of.

I was going to ask matthowie about where they are with a mobile version of metafilter.

mobile.metafilter.com

I just want to mention that AT&T is a very very frustrating company. When I canceled my cell phone service with them at the end of my contract, they tried billing me three different times afterwards for service I had already turned down and never used.

I had to run through their annoying customer service each time, wasting far too much of my life.