Cellphone Purgatory . . . Long Rant Re: Apple and AT&T

My version 1 iPhone died this week when it got an itsy-bitsy bit wet (I'm not being facetious, it really didn't get very wet). It was very old so I went to the Apple store in Boston (I live in Boston) to buy a replacement. Unfortunately, at some point I joined my wife's AT&T plan rather than having my own, so I cannot buy the new phone on my old number without my wife present. We just had a baby less than two weeks ago, she's not taking a 1hour train ride to the apple store with the baby so I can get a new phone. No problem the helpful Apple guy tells me, just buy the phone with a brand new number and then call AT&T customer service to have it switched back to your old account and old number. I am convinced and buy the new phone.

I get home from work tonight and promptly call AT&T. The guy on the line did not seem bright, but he worked hard for about 30-45min trying to solve my problem and finally decided it was not possible. He could not put my old number on the new account nor could he cancel the new account and put my new phone on the old number without generating a $400 charge because the iPhone price is subsidized. I don't know what to do, so I give up on that call.

10 minutes later I have the idea of just switching the old account to my name and SS# so that I can go back to the Apple store, return the new phone, and get another new phone on the old account. I have my wife call since the account is in her name. She tells them what she wants to do, they tell her it will cost $18, they'll have to run a credit check on me, and then put her on hold and eventually hang up on her. WTF?

I call AT&T a third time to cancel the old account all together (my wife doesn't even use them anymore), which preserves me the option of keeping the new phone or ditching it for a different subscriber. I figure that I can txt all my contacts my new phone number and it will get out there eventually. The lady who cancels accounts asks me why I am cancelling and I tell her my whole story. She tells me that if I want to keep the old number I can order a new iPhone online with no upgrade charge and take the phone I just purchased back. I agree with her that this sounds easy. I hang up with her and get online at AT&T to order my new phone. I give them my information to connect an online account with my phone number and they then TEXT me a temporary password to log in. My old iPhone is dead. I cannot receive the temporary password! I cannot order a new iPhone online!

Please advise.

Switch to verizon?

Switch SIM cards between the two phones?

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9738138-1.html

Do you need to go to the apple store? Is there a AT&T store close that your wife could go to?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by JD720

Do you need to go to the apple store? Is there a AT&T store close that your wife could go to?

---

I believe I don't even need her if I go to the AT&T store. Unfortunately, they are generally sold out of iPhones in this area (Apple keeps them for themselves). So it would be one trip to order the phone, one trip to pick up the phone, and still a trip to the Apple store to take back the phone I just got.

Just cancelling the old account is sounding better and better. I hate wasting my life on crap like this.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jumbopackage

Switch SIM cards between the two phones?

Removing the iPhone's SIM card | Crave - CNET

---

Interesting. Wouldn't this require that I keep both accounts open indefinitely?

Take both phones in with you and have them switch SIMs while the text is sent.

Or find an At&T phone...borrow one from a friend or buy one off Craigslist. Activate that one and get your text or whatever and then "upgrade" to a new iPhone.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ericlambi

Interesting. Wouldn't this require that I keep both accounts open indefinitely?

---

You just need the text, right?

The SIM card will tell the new phone to use your old account.

Receive the text, do what you were planning on, then swap them back before you take the new phone back.