(Statement of Full Disclosure and Transparency: I do not have a non-working iPhone. I do not have a working one. I have been informed by my wife/CPA/CFO that I am not going to own one. At least not until we are out of debt and dropping crumbs in the kitchen on new flooring. I am an impartial spectator, and have not been bribed to blog in any way.)
Apple and AT&T almost had it all figured out. The iPhone launch went off on time, and there seemed to be enough in the stores to satisfy the people who waited in line. There was enough frenzy and worry that by mid-afternoon, iPhone bids on eBay were topping $1,500.
But now the iHoneymoon is over. Already there are several reports of melancholy technohemes who have an iBrick: a shiny paperweight, devoid of cell service and functionality. Is it possible that Apple and AT&T were a little naive to think that Verizon, T-Mobile, AllTel, and the rest would ramp up their call centers in anticipation of losing business? Not only that, there have been internal issues lingering from the (old)AT&T/Cingular merger. Some are reporting that they can’t activate online because their number used to be a business line. That sort of obstacle should have been anticipated and eliminated. If nothing else, a separate web-portal to work around for those people.
The sword cuts both ways. Live by the iHype, die by the iHype. Assuming AT&T/Apple break every sort of record for establishing accounts in 24 hours, all it takes is a few well-placed high-profile complaint stories to be the one rotten apples in the barrel. (Anyone know if Jeff Jarvis got an iPhone operational?)
[tags]Ike Pigott, Occam’s RazR, Apple, iPhone, AT&T, Steve Rubel, Josh Hallett, Jeff Jarvis, salacious namedropping[/tags]
Rutrow, Shaggy.