iPhone 3G FAQ Update

We've just updated the FAQ with many of the reader questions you guys sent in over the weekend. Thanks! For ease of reading, we have the newly added questions below. If you want to see the whole FAQ, which has all the questions (including these new ones), it's here.

Can I activate my iPhone over iTunes like I did the first time? Apple and AT&T want you to activate your phone in stores, but there's a possibility of activating it over iTunes if you somehow didn't do it in the store. However, you will be required to sign an agreement while you're in the store stating that you're going to enter into a 2-year contract eventually, and you'll be penalized if you don't sign up within 30 days. More details are here.

What's the price for the iPhone for existing AT&T customers who may or may not be eligible for an upgrade? AT&T's just told us that yes, ineligible customers will have to pay the full, unsubsidized price for the iPhone. See the post for more, but basically it won't be $199 and $299. No official price has been set yet.

If I buy my friend's old iPhone when he updates to iPhone 3G, can I use it as a cheap iPod touch without activating it? Yup! Everything but the calling features should be active, except it will say "No SIM" at the top. Thanks Andy.

In light of MobileMe apparently being an instant push service, will iPhone 3G also support push from other IMAP service providers? We haven't heard any word from Apple that there's any kind of push email besides to MobileMe and Exchange servers, not counting Yahoo, which is already push now. Thanks Andrew.

Will you be able to buy insurance through AT&T like for other standard plan phones? AT&T's Asurion will cover all phones for $5 EXCEPT the iPhone, which is the way it's been since the first iPhone's launch. Thanks John.

What are the chances of Apple releasing an iPhone with increased data storage before the next-next gen iPhones come out? Pretty damn likely. I'd expect a 32GB iPhone some time late this year or early next year. Thanks David.

What will happen to the current Installer.app once the App Store launches? Will people keep updating this or will it be considered piracy? Apple doesn't exactly welcome the current Installer.app and jailbreaking efforts with open arms. However, since the App Store is going to be bringing in revenue to Apple, it's possible that through jailbreaking and Installer.app, you could bring pay-for-play apps for free onto your phone without actually paying for it.

My wife currently has a [insert lousy phone] with AT&T. Will she be able to keep her phone number when she upgrades to the iPhone 3G? Yes. She'll be able to renew the contract for 2 years and still keep her phone number. Thanks John.

I've got international roaming on my AT&T plan now. Can I take the iPhone 3G to various countries, including Japan? We don't have official confirmation of this from Apple yet, it's likely that your phone will work in Japan. The iPhone is Quad-Band, which means it works on GSM/EDGE on the 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz frequencies and UMTS/HSDPA on the 850, 1900 and 2100 MHz frequencies. Because of the reports that Apple's using Softbank to distribute iPhones in Japan, we can deduce that you should be able to roam just fine. From Wikipedia:

SoftBank Mobile currently operates both PDC (Japanese 2G) and W-CDMA (UMTS 3G) networks. SoftBank's 3G network is compatible with UMTS and supports transparent global roaming for existing UMTS subscribers from other countries outside Japan. Subscribers of GSM networks having roaming agreements with SoftBank Mobile can also roam on the SoftBank 3G network by using UMTS handsets.

Thanks Randall.

Will MobileMe users have the ability to perform a remote wipe of their lost/stolen iPhone 3G? It's not one of the features listed on Apple's site for MobileMe, and it's more a business/Enterprise feature. It's unlikely, but we don't know for sure.

Will you need the $45 AT&T Enterprise data plan in order to use Exchange or MobileMe? For MobileMe, no. That'll be available to everybody. We're checking on the Exchange part. Thanks Thomas.

What will happen to my rollover minutes I accrued over the last year? AT&T's preliminary answer says that you'll keep your rollover minutes, but there's no official statement on this yet. Thanks Brian.

I have 2 years of AppleCare through October of 2009. If something happens to my phone in the future and they want to replace it, will I get an iPhone 3G or the old one? That depends on Apple. If they've got any stock of the original one, they'll give you a refurbished unit. If they've only got iPhone 3Gs left, you might get lucky? Thanks Boyd.

After I activate my iPhone 3G, will I be able to sync all the settings from my old iPhone onto it? Yes. When you activate the new phone, iTunes will ask you if you want to sync the old existing data onto it. Do a sync with your old phone before docking your new one and you'll be set. Thanks Andrew.