I rarely get into the mix with the A-listers who chase the news, but I happened to be in the Burlingame Apple store this morning, and a nice guy who sold me my new Airport Time Capsule also took the time to tell me what was happening with the release of the long-awaited 3G iPhone.
First of all, the store has hired a slew of new people, who are being trained to stand at the door and help people immediately.
But what they don’t tell you unless you get into a conversation is that you can’t activate the phone without a credit card, a social security number, and a government issued ID.
That’s huge!
This isn’t going to be the warm fuzzy experience of the first iPhone, where you unboxed it at home and activated it through iTunes. This is going to be a cell phone-controlled activation, even if you buy the phone in the Apple store.
As long as that’s the case, I’m going to wait a while.
When you go, don’t forget to bring all your ID. Pretend you are going to the IRS. Or the airport.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
What? Social Security number? that sounds ominous…
I just wonder if they are doing credit checks because now the phones are partially subsidized.
I don’t understand…whats the purpose of all this security? Did they give any rationale?
I think it must be the cellular contract.
Introducing iPhone 3G. With fast 3G wireless technology, GPS mapping, support for enterprise features like Microsoft Exchange, and the new App Store, iPhone 3G puts even more features at your fingertips. And like the original iPhone, it combines three products in one — a revolutionary phone, a widescreen iPod, and a breakthrough Internet device with rich HTML email and a desktop-class web browser. iPhone 3G. It redefines what a mobile phone can do — again.
http://mybuscador.googlepages.com/iphone3g