hell, then heaven. my iphone ordeal. and trends.

i meant to write this post earlier (Friday/Saturday), but i was too busy playing with my iPhone.
ahhhh, the iPhone. quite a bit to talk about here. but i'll focus on 2 key areas:
(1) my ordeal (decribed by some as the iPocolypse), and
(2) my POV on the trendiness of the iPhone.

the former is a bit more harrowing + descriptive, but if you simply want the raman slice of life perspective you've come to know and love, scroll down further to the see the piece on trends.

THE ORDEAL:

July 11 finally arrived. unlike most, a day i'd been only looking forward to since June 9th, when i broke my current mobile device in a tragic bike accident (stupid pedestrians), thus losing mobile access to my email.

in my new role at work, such a new thing was a productivity KILLER. i would wait patiently for the new iPhone release (with which i would be one of the few people at my company to check work email), but not a minute longer.

5am (Friday morning): the alarm goes off. groggy from staying up too long reading, i stumbled out of bed, brushed my teeth, put on my shorts, hoody, and sandals, grabbed a book, and hit the road for the mall (somewhere i've probably been <>5.20am: by the time i arrived at 5.20am, there were a few cars parked outside. i walk up the entrance and wait, a few others hopping outside. mall security pulls up + tells us to get back in our cars, as we can't stand on the sidewalk until 6am. we go stand outside our cars.

6am: we get in line outside the mall entrance. the doors are supposed to open at 7am for mallworkers. i strike up idle conversation with a few others waiting, one of whom had the original iPhone. Apple store employees trickle into the mall. i thumb thru my book

6.40am: someone from the Apple Store lets us in. apparantly someone else got into the mall early + was already waiting outside the store. we all walk quickly (and awkwardly, no one wanted to be the guy running) to the Apple Store + get in line. i'm ~#15.

7.00am: by now there are 50-6o people in line. some Apple employees briefly open the store gates and start handing out Starbucks Coffee & SmartWater to those in line. other store employees start telling people in line what they'll need to get started (converting their plan, etc). one employee specifically is asking who will be using their new iPhone for business. he gives us his card for troubleshooting + hitting us up later for feedback. some Starbucks employees start passing out coupons to come back next week for a free coffee. i continue to thumb through my book

7.30am: still reading. by now the line is 200+ long. there's lots of chatter about the new phone, and the application package available. i can't concentrate on my book anymore. i'm getting too excited.

8.00am: the store gates open. everyone in line applauds. they start letting people in the store, in small batches. i get to be in the first batch of 20. as we walk in, all of the store employees are applauding US, smilin, and hi-fiving us. an associate comes up to me, shakes my hand, introduces himself, and off we go. he collects my details, grabs my phone, and takes me to the back for my phone activation (handled via a wireless PDA he's holding)

8.15am: we're having trouble getting my account transferred. we think it's bc there may be a discount on my wireless account. we get on the phone w/ AT&T, and they can't find anything. they tell me to goto an AT&T store (there's one in the mall) to get my iPhone there. i had planned to use my Apple giftcards towards my purchase, so was getting antsy. the store manager, Mike, tells me the head down to the store to sort out my account, and i'd be welcome back into the Apple store after i'm sorted out (bypassing the line, which now exceeds 200+).

8.20am: arrive at the AT&T kiosk. they are clearly a bit more frazzled by the demand (though there are only ~30 people in line). i head straight to the manager, who tells me to please get to the back of the line since people had been in line since 7.30am (and that they only have 20 iPhones available). in a dick move, i nicely tell her i i've been here since 5am, and have been a longtime AT&T customer, plan to get my iPhone from the Apple store upstairs, and i just need her help w/ their customer support.

8.50am: after almsot half an hour on the phone w/ the AT&T store on + off hold w/ various levels of customer AT&T customer support, she sends me BACK to the Apple store (w/ no progress having been made...no one can seem to figure out why the AT&T system is rejecting my upgrade of service), to simply get THEM on the phone w/ AT&T

9:00am: walk back into the Apple store. manager Mike hands me off to Aaron at the Genius Bar in the back, who are trouble shooting the wickedest issues customers are having. Aaron is super nice, and we get BACK on the phone w/ AT&T. over the course of the next 2 hours, AT&T will wind up deactiviating my existing SIM, Aaron getting authorized by his boss to open up an iPhone (w/o purchase or activation...a BIG no-no), and lots of back & forth w/ AT&T. throughout the entire time, i calmy read my book, and mess around w/ the instore MacBooks, rearranging my schedule for day it looks like i'm going to have to skip in the office. oh, and i haven't showered, eaten, or slept. yet i keep a cheery (though bleak) demeanor, with everyone in the back of the store being super nice + supportive (employees and customers alike)

10.30am: while on hold. my Mac Genius ("heroes don't all wear capes," as his shirt says) informs me that bc i've been so patient + understanding, him + his boss have decided to give me my iPhone for free, once we sort all this stuff out. i tell him that's a really nice gesture, but not necessary, showing my $150 in giftcards (received for Christmas since i knew i'd be purchasing a new iPod/iPhone/MacBook sometime in the new year). he insists, i protest. he insists, i give in with a smile.

11:00am: we are FINALLY able to get my account upgraded transferred. now all that is necessarsy is authorization of the actual phone w/ the ATT servers. but 11am ET = 8am PT. in California, a jillion consumers are trying to activate THEIR new iPhones. the AT&T servers begin to hose/crash. NO ONE in the store can now activate their phones. we continue to push activation request, but continue to be denied.

11:30am: we finally get through after 30 mins of non-stop attempts. we quickly enter my credit card (for authorization) + i'm good to go. now all that's necessary is activating the iPhone via iTunes in the store. but guess what? now the iTunes servers are hosed. given this was the only step left, and my guy Aaron is long over his break, they tell me i can simply handle the rest at home. weary to get home, i thank them, and walk to my car.

11.45am: in the car ride home, i realize that i wasn't sure if my iPhone ACTUALLY got comped (since the receipt was sent to me via email). i'm OK with this, but upset that i didn't get to use my gift cards (now having paid full price for my 16gb iPhone). i push this aside, and make my mental plan for getting home, getting ready for work, and simultaneously trying to get my new iPhone setup

12.00pm: boot up my PC to upgrade iTunes. grab a shower. rearrange my work schedule (biggest meeting is w/ my director @ 2pm about the future of my career). try activating iPhone via iTunes. no luck. server hosed. i still effectively have NO cell phone (the iPhone is effectively a brick only good for making emergency calls, nothing else), am exhausted, and need to prep for my mtg. i make a PBJ, and head off to work @ 1.30. but before doing so, i fire off a quick email to the Apple Store Manager Mike about my purchase issue (not expecting a response for th enext few days)

3.30pm: work meeting went extremely well. i remain optimistic. i head to my desk, boot up, and try activating my iPhone. success! i immediately head down to by buddy Kevin's desk to get my work email setup. also a success. i begin playing w/ the basics. i spend the rest of the afternoon back and forth between my iPhone and getting work done (until about 8pm). oh, and i received a friendly email back from store manager Mike saying they'd sort out the issue (as of Tuesday, the issue is being sorted, and i'm VERY optimistic)

the rest of the weekend was spent NOT catching up on sleep, but staying pretty active out + about (birthday party, lunches/dinners to catch up w/ friends), + volunteering @ Happen + Toylab. but every other waking hour is spent playing with my new iPhone + downloading new appls, and learning the ins/outs of it.


ON TRENDS:

upon sharing the good news with a few friends, they were surprised that i so quickly jumped on the bandwagon to something which is undoubtedly going to define the gadget trends of pop culture for the next several months. by effectively dropping their price to $199/299, my prediction is that soon everyone and their mother will soon be sporting an iPhone (similar to the Moto Razr years before). let me address this very point.

at first i was really uneasy w/ getting the device that everyone + their mother would soon have, but frankly, that's not why i got into it (or get into things in general). do i dislike trendy things, yes. but not because they are trendy. because i choose what i want to do, and would prefer to not have such things defined by others.

if walking around w/ your pockets pulled out (or collar popped) was on trend, the only reason i would give a shit one way or another would be
(1) bc it was practical/impractical,
OR
(2) it looked stupid (which is matter of personal, not public opinion...though one could argue the former is somewhat influenced by the latter...the definition of trends influencing behavior)

NET - i get things bc i like them. and to hell w/ trends. i wear tshirts + sneakers/sandals to clubs bc it's what i like to do (though on occasion i'm not allowed into said clubs, which is OK, bc i probably didn't want to go in the first place). in all honesty, i've never been comfortable "dressing up" (i only tuck my shirt in @ work bc i have to, but i iron my shirts for work bc it looks nice :)

so back to the iPhone. playing with them, talking to those that own them, and reading a slew of articles on the future of mobile computing (and seeing the potential of said future in NE Asia), it is UNREAL how much of a gamechanger this device is at getting us towards that future.

if you know (or have heard) anything about Apple, it is crazy how much thinking goes into their products. not just the aesthetic design, but the functionality...the seemless, intentional integration of hardware and software (+ while somewhat restricting...but that's why we like Facebook VS MySpace, Target VS Walmart, etc)

it's really quite brilliant. and while i don't have a Mac (yet), it was clear to me earlier on that the iPhone would deliver on this very expectation of changing the game + delivering maximum utility, form, and functionality to the user (me). as a gamechanger, the iPhone has seen a slew of wannabes + clones. this is good for the market. but what MOST these "me too's" don't have are the apps + content integration (iTunes) delivered by Apple. don't even get me started on the web browser (Safari). ridiculous.

after using my iphone for just a few days, i will NEVER go back to a blackberry, and definitely never go back to a windows mobile device.

in closing, i leave you with something i posted to my Twitter feed at 1.30AM Saturday (still playing w/ my new iPhone): "You know how when you start seeing someone you spend every free moment with them (the honeymoon)? I am putting my iPhone away now."

...and here's something my buddy Bob shared shortly thereafter (in response):