activation

Several users in the US are reporting problems activating their new iPhone 3G Ss for use. A message displayed for many users during the activation process suggests that it could be as much as 48 hours before the activations go through. Some users have had some luck calling AT&T and having a representative help them get it activated, while others weren't so lucky.

If you've been wondering where you can vacation, and also pick up an unlocked iPhone 3G, then look no further than a new list that Apple posted.

One of the worst parts about the iPhone 3G launch was that we no longer had the convenience of activating our iPhone ourselves from the comfort of our homes, but instead reverted back to forcing people to activate them before they leave the store. Thankfully they may be going back to the old method, or at least partly.

In case you've been putting it off after yesterday's big disappointment, iTunes activation is now running smoothly for all iPhone 3G and original iPhone users. Feel free to upgrade to iPhone 2.0 and buy a shiny new iPhone 3G. It's been going strong since later afternoon yesterday, so we're thinking that everything has been sorted out. Enjoy!

It looks like we're not the only ones having major iPhone 3G activation issues. Reports are saying that customers in the UK are also getting frustrated due to an unforeseen software compatibility issue in their activation process. The registration process for O2 does not use iTunes, but instead uses a web-based system. Unfortunately for Apple Stores, their system requires Internet Explorer to function, whereas Apple Stores had only Safari to work with. They managed to get around it by installing Fusion on some of the Macs but their system isn't going as smoothly as hoped.

For some extremely loyal (read: crazed) Apple fans, the thought of having to unbox the iPhone 3G in-store seemed like a massive breach of our rights as Apple enthusiasts. Fortunately, the in-store sign up doesn't actually require removing the iPhone from its box. In fact, all that's needed from the iPhone itself is the four barcodes located on the box. Apple and AT&T employees will take the phone out for you by default, although asking to keep it wrapped up for ceremonious unboxing at home shouldn't be a problem.

The long and short of it: iTunes does the "unbricking" so it can be done at home (as most iPhone 3G customers are learning today).

As the iPhone 3G began rolling out in the United States, customers have begun experiencing extreme difficulty when attempting to activate or "unbrick" their iPhone 3Gs from within iTunes. Customers on the East Coast have had more luck than customers in states further west who are completely unable to use their new phones. The process of signing up for the plan in Apple and AT&T stores is being completed swiftly (in about 8 minutes), leaving only iTunes' activation servers to blame. Those who cannot get their phones activated within a reasonable amount of time are being sent home to complete activation there.

While it has widely been rumored that the iPhone would be going on sale at 8AM on July 11th, and AT&T had already confirmed that that is when it would be going on sale in their stores, Apple had yet to make a formal announcement about what time of day their Apple Stores in the U.S. would start selling the device. They formally announced today after their conference call that Apple Stores in the U.S. at 8AM, just like AT&T stores.

O2 Ireland has confirmed that the activation process for the iPhone 3G will be a two-step process for their customers. As was said earlier by an O2 UK employee, customers will have the opportunity to sign up for contracts in advance of the July 11th launch, so that when they arrive that day, they can simply have the already activated SIM card placed into the iPhone, which they then go home and sync with the latest version of iTunes.
[via MacNN]

iPhoneinCanada.ca has posted what they claim is a leaked Rogers Wireless internal memo explaining the Rogers iPhone 3G activation process, which they say they received from an anonymous user. The memo mentions that iPhones will be arriving to stores in a "bricked" state, and that a special "activation only" version of iTunes 7.7 will be required to activate the device and un-brick it.