Six ways to get out of an existing contract to get the iPhone
If you desperately want an Apple iPhone but you're stuck in a contract with another network operator, Consumerist suggests six ways to escape your service plan without paying a $175 early termination fee.
Apple Stores to close between 2pm and 6pm on launch day
AT&T has already announced its stores will be closing early on Friday, around 4pm, then reopening at 6pm for the Apple iPhone launch. Apple has announced it is doing the same; all US Apple Stores will close at 2pm on Friday, to reopen at 6pm.
How to avoid iPhone envy
Most of us here in the UK won't get the chance to get our hands on the Apple iPhone for at least six months. If you're feeling envious of the lucky ones that are first in line at the Apple iPhone launch on Friday, PC World reveals a few clever tips to dress up your current cell phone and avoid iPhone envy.
TUESDAY
Apple Stores will offer 25 iPhone accessories
More than two dozen accessories for the Apple iPhone will be available in Apple Stores when the device goes on sale this Friday, AppleInsider reports .
Most are likely to be third party products such as cases and protective gear which manufacturers have been able to produce despite the minimal exposure of the Apple iPhone so far.
Apple will offer three accessories of its own; a stereo headset with mic for $29, a Bluetooth headset for $129, and a white iPhone dock.
Some iPhone buyers await 2nd gen handsets
Not everyone will be flocking to AT&T and Apple Stores this Friday. Some potential buyers are waiting to buy the Apple iPhone until an update version is released.
Worries over cost, slow network speeds, and battery life are putting some people off from buying the $499 Apple iPhone, according to Reuters .
Another area of concern is whether the iPhone's on-screen keyboard will be as easy to use as Steve Jobs claims. A wonky keyboard would most definitely annoy power users who write a lot of emails.
"Just like you don't buy the first model year of a car, you might not want to buy the first version of the iPhone," one analyst said.
iPhone to boost Apple's revenue by $200m
The Apple iPhone may provide an extra $200m in revenue for Apple on the launch day this Friday.
If every one of the 1,962 stores that the Apple iPhone will be stocked in sells 200 units each at an average selling price of $550, the grand total generated would be $216 million, TheStreet.com calculated. And that's not even including online sales...
Make some money if the iPhone fails
It's not just Apple that is set to make a nice profit off the Apple iPhone; so could you. Why not put a bet on whether its screen will start to crack, like the first generation Apple iPod nano? You could make some good money in return.
US betting firm BetUS.com are giving odds of 20-1 that someone will get trampled while scrambling to get their hands on an Apple iPhone on Friday. The website has also put odds on how long the batteries will last and whether the devices will be recalled, LiveScience reported .
Other odds include:
Consumers pay at least three times the original price ($1,500) on eBay: 2-1
The screen breaks/ cracks like Apple's first-generation iPod nano: 150-1
There are mass reports of the battery life being less than the promised 8 hours: 10-1
Apple says iPhone can be activated at home
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on an Apple iPhone, there's no need to hang around the store waiting for a member of staff to activate it. Instead you can go home and activate it using iTunes on your computer.
iTunes will guide you through the registration process to choose a service plan, authorise your credit and activate your Apple iPhone, AppleInsider reported .
Once the Apple iPhone is activated, you can sync all your existing phone numbers and other contact information, calendars, email accounts, web browser bookmarks, music, photos, podcasts, TV shows and movies in the same way you sync your Apple iPod with iTunes.
MONDAY
Why can't my phone do that?
The iPhone will have a massive impact on mobile phone companies worldwide - even if it fails, says the Chicago Tribune . It says the iPhone is a technical and psychological "disrupter" that will make users question how good their existing mobile phones are. And that's something that could badly affect Apple's revivals, particularly Motorola . Apple is seeking to get mindshare, rather than marketshare initially, the Tribune says. Apple will also need to be wary that the iPhone's success doesn't cannibalise iPod sales.
Apple iPhone bubble set to burst
Analysts are telling Apple shareholders to offload their shares ahead of the iPhone's launch. Bloomberg says the iPhone is artificially inflating Apple's share price and that the shares could crash after Friday as sales fail to meet expectations, says The Inquirer . Bloomberg is saying this because the iPhone isn't a straight sale - buyers have to sign up to an AT&T contract too.
First Apple iPhones arrive in the US
The first shipments of Apple iPhones started to hit the US last weekend. The handsets will be distributed from a handful of top secret locations to 2,000 retail locations later this week, in time for the Friday launch.
At each location (rumoured to be Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco), armed staff are guarding this year's most sought-after gadget around the clock, Apple Insider reports .
