Okay, I’ve got big news. Really – you’re going to want to sit down for this one. Ready? Apple.. is going to release a new iPhone this year. Probably next month.
Why is your jaw not dropping? Sure, Apple releases a new iPhone every year in June — and sure, the next iPhone has already played a pivotal part in a massive scandal that resulted in a police raid on a blogger’s house. But.. but..
Fine. At this point, a new iPhone announcement in June isn’t really a surprise. It’s more of a tradition — and this year, it looks like AT&T is getting ready a bit early.
Early this morning, we received a report from a reader:
Not sure if anyone [..] has noticed this same thing, but my Upgrade Eligibility date on my AT&T account switched from 11/21 to 6/21 in the last day or so. I bought a 3GS on launch day last year, and my upgrade date read 11/21 since then. A few other folks in my office have noticed the same changes happening to their accounts as well.
Upgrade eligibility jumping from November 21st to June 21st, eh? You know what happens in June? Flag Day, people — not to mention Father’s Day and the Philippine Independence Day. Also, new friggin’ iPhones.
We’ve since confirmed that this isn’t an isolated incident, but it’s definitely not showing up for everyone. AT&T could be rolling this out across their database slowly. Another possibility: they may not have intended for anyone to see this yet, and just borked the query for a handful of people. AT&T offered up early upgrade paths for long-time iPhone owners with both the 3G and the 3GS.
Now, onto the date itself: Could this day, June 21st, be the day that the next iPhone hits the shelves? Quite possibly. It’s worth noting, however, that it would mean bucking tradition: June 21st is a Monday, whereas Apple has launched every single previous iPhone on a Friday. Friday launches are all about the numbers: less people work on weekends, meaning more people have time to buy the iPhone in the first 3 days.
Apple’s got two venues from which they could announce the fourth gen iPhone: WWDC (where they’ve announced every other iPhone), which begins on June 7th this year, or the Yerba Buena Arts Center, which Apple has purportedly locked down for June 22nd (one day after the upgrade eligibility date).
What say you? What do you think will happen?
[Thanks Rob!]
Lame! Iphone sucks!
A few Apple haters in the mix. The next gen iPhone is going to be unreal. I have my date for upgrade on June 28th, 2010 and will wait all night to get the newbie.
2010 will be the year of the iPhone/iPad revolution so all of you look a-likes, sit down and shut up!
As usual. I will fall victim to their awesomeness!!
It’s kind of amusing, I purposely avoided getting the “3GS” (still have my 3G) just so I could be sure I would have the discounted upgrade when the 4 gen iPhone rolled out. Now it looks like it was needless to hold back… Oh well, live and learn right? The 3GS wasn’t anything all that amazing anyway.
It’ll show up on the following Friday. Moving the upgrade date up probably allows for a buffer so that people can’t complain about being ineligible to buy the phone at the crack of dawn.
the 3GS is pretty amazing when you look at the hardware specs. Not much of a feature bump but the processor and RAM upgrade alone made it a fairly worthwhile upgrade.
FYI: The 3GS speed bump made a world of difference. With the original iPhone and iPhone 3G, I would often start something (like loading a web page or launching an app), tire of waiting, start looking around, and by the time the task was finished, I would forget what I was doing. The 3GS responds fast enough that my ADD doesn’t take over.
You missed out then. You could easily sell an old 3G iPhone on ebay/craigslist to cover the cost of the new 3GS . You could have had a free upgrade… I’ve upgraded on launch day since the original iPhone and it’s been free every time.
*yawn
My upgrade date still says 12/18/10 for my 3GS…
Just logged in. My upgrade date is 11/20/2010 and I have a 3GS.
“You can take advantage of our no commitment pricing. Our records indicate that you will be eligible for an upgrade at a discounted price on 11/20/2010″
Same here.
Since AT&T doesn’t really do anything just to be nice, I wonder if this is their way of trying to renew as many 2-year iPhone contracts as possible before Verizon’s iPhone comes out (in the fall?) and AT&T starts bleeding subscribers.
AT&T has an exclusive contract with Apple through 2012 so Verizon will not have an iPhone in the fall.
The length of the Apple-ATT contract is unclear at this point.
It was initially 5 years.
Many industry pundits (with connections) have stated that the contract was re-negotiated.
Expect Verizon soon.
This move by ATT is basically confirmation.
*sigh* Contracts change. They get amended and breached all the time.
Taking a THREE YEAR OLD contract as gospel really doesn’t prove anything. Three years in the tech world is an eternity.
No one even knows if the original contract is valid. Their could be clauses about Customer Satisfaction or Network Saturation. Hell, with Apple, there could be a “we can void this contract at any time” clause.
Let’s just all wait until June 7th, ok?
That contract may have had amendments or clauses in it. With the latest survey showing ATT having the lowest customer satisfaction rating(I’ve not experienced such issues) it may be reason for the two companies to do some renegotiating. Apple may just have the “rights” to open the iPhone up to other vendors.
“June 21st is a Monday, whereas Apple has launched every single previous iPhone on a Friday. Friday launches are all about the numbers: less people work on weekends, meaning more people have time to buy the iPhone in the first 3 days.”
Sounds to me like it then would be released the Friday before, or the 18th.
How about this?
1) Announce new phone at WWDC
2) Set early upgrade date to June 21st so early adopters can still upgrade though AT&T’s systems. Could set the date to tomorrow or June 23rd, as long as it’s before the release date.
3) Pre-orders start June 22nd
3) Available some Friday after that.
Any word on if this will also apply to Rogers customers in Canada?
I bought my 3G about a month before the 3GS was announced :(
Still showing as 9/28 on my account…I’m switching back to Verizon to get the HTC Incredible anyway. Good by Apple and AT&T!
So this means, i’ll have to wait a week after they hit eBay so the inflation price goes down. I’m still gonna pay an arm and a leg but……
Um, no….the old 2g’s are still $200 on ebay…not sure where you’re thinking this price drop is coming from.
I bought my 3GS on launch day last year, and it now says I’m eligible “6/20/2010″… weird
[IMG]http://i42.tinypic.com/255nuaf.png[/IMG]
Same here, “…may qualify for a full discount on a standard iPhone upgrade on 06/20/2010,” for a 3GS purchased on release day last June.
I bought my iPhone 3gs the day that it came out and the eligibility for upgrade says 6/13/2010.
“You know what happens in June? Flag Day, people — not to mention Father’s Day and the Philippine Independence Day. ”
You rock my socks off Greg.
<3.
Flag day is actually June 14th.
Also, my father’s bday.
Don’t do me any favors:
As a valued AT&T customer, we can offer you a discounted iPhone upgrade at a higher price, along with a 2-year commitment and an $18 upgrade fee.
Good old AT&T double-speak.
same thing for me. WTF?
I see 6/27/10 as the upgrade date on my line, but 2011 for my wife’s line. We both got our iphone 3GS’s the same day, and she is the true early adopter (iphone2G). This doesn’t make sense!
As much as I hate Apple evangelists, I still love my iPhone. it’s the first cell phone that had an intuitive interface and a great web browsing experience. The next iPhone will be a first day buy for me.
Mine has said June since last year (and I got my phone in February 2009). I haven’t checked recently, but thats what it has said for a long time.
It’ll be a cold day in Hell when I commit to another 2-year contract with AT&T. Or they’ll actually make their network function. The odds are about equal, I’d say. I’ll wait for Verizon, thanks.
“As a valued AT&T customer, we can offer you a discounted iPhone upgrade at a reduced discount, along with a 2-year commitment. Our records indicate that you will be eligible for an upgrade to an iPhone at a discounted price on 03/03/2011“
At least yours gives you a date…
“As a valued AT&T customer, this line qualifies for discounted equipment pricing when you sign a new 2-year commitment.
iPhone Upgrade
As a valued AT&T customer, we can offer you a discounted iPhone upgrade with a new 2-year commitment and an $18 upgrade fee. ”
I’m screwed, damn you AT&T – you’re not allowing me to Rethink Possible.
That mostly likely means that you have already passed the upgrade date.
That’s a good thing — it means you should be eligible for an upgrade now…
Yeah. Mine hasn’t changed either. Feb. ‘11. BOOOO!!!
This is great news!
Mine says, “06/18/2010.” Got my iPhone 3G S on the launch date also (2009).
Says I’m eligible on 6/20/2010 as well:
“You may qualify for a full discount on a standard iPhone upgrade on 06/20/2010.”
On my family plan, the main account holder can get the new phone on 06/20/2010. but all the rest are on 10/1/10. Sucks to be the children! lol
Same here, main line can get the upgrade on Jun 20th but the rest 2011
I called AT&T to ask why my main line was eligible but my second line was still not eligible until 7/11. It has something to do with how much you pay into the line. Since the main line gets the full $120 charge per month (minute plan plus data plan) but the secondary line only gets $40 ($10 phone line plus data plan). Since you pay more into the main line than the secondary line, the contract upgrade is written off quickly.
Got my iPhone 3GS at launch as well (or soon afterwards), but it’s showing February 2011 for me. Not only that, I paid $499 for my iPhone 3GS, as I was doing an early upgrade from a 3G.
If you want to easily check your eligibility text *NEW# aka *639# AT&T will send your status in a text message.
My text response
“As a valued customer, we can offer you an upgrade with a new 2-year commitment and an 18 upgrade fee.” WTF. Why does everyone else have a date?
I believe that means you are already eligible for an upgrade so you are all good no matter what.
“As a valued customer, we can offer you an upgrade with a new 2-yr commitment and waive the $18 upgrade fee.”
Waive the fee!! I’ve never heard that from AT&T before. They must know I was looking at the Droid Incredible…
@ Sonia
you are eligible for an early upgrade. not a ‘full’ upgrade. a ‘full’ upgrade lists a date and a full discount. for instance I had a 3gs and it was stolen. so I purchased another for 399 from AT&T instead of paying 599 for one. so for all of you who have actual dates you will receive full discounts (199 presumably unless they Jack the price up on the new phone). I promise this is the way it works I had the sane message on my account and was also charged an $18 early upgrade fee.
My 12/03/2010 upgrade eligibility date and that of my wife, 08/22/2010, has not changed. I’m hoping they change this policy as your article suggests because ever since I purchased the 2G I’ve become an early adopter.
“You may qualify for a full discount on a standard iPhone upgrade on 06/20/2010″ here as well.
Yay!
I smell Verizon’s iPhone in June!!!!!!!!!!
After seeing what a speed boost will do with the HTC Incredible, I’m tempted – I’ve been very pleased with the speed of the 3GS, but the way the Incredible loaded the camera app almost instantly and rendered full webpages at near desktop-speeds left me envious. Throw in videochat and HD video and it’ll be pretty tempting…
Mine says 6/18, 4 days earlier! W00t!
My account now shows I’m eligible for an upgrade and last month it showed that I was eligible in September 2010. I currently have an iPhone 3G.
iPhone gave me cancer!
Same here. Mine moved up 6 months.
I will never purchase an iPhone as long as AT&T is the sole carrier…
I bought 2 3gs’ on launch day and mine shows 06/20 and was previously in 2011 (I have bought every iPhone on launch day).
So basically the majority of the new iphone sales are going to be coming from already existing iphone users? lol
Mine also still says 11/21/10… hopefully it will change!
I checked my ATT account after reading this article. I “may be eligible for ree full iPhone upgrade on 06/25, the anniversary of when I started my 3GS contract. My wife’s phone, a 2nd line in the contract, will be eligible on 02/25,11.
Hmmm
I know I’m upgrading…
The iPhone is getting old now. Need a new toy. I’m planning on getting the HTC 4G Evo so this is great news. Lets me get out of my contract early.
Thanks Apple and AT&T!
This isn’t to get you out of contract, just means you can upgrade then… sorry.
How About This?
1) Announce The New iPhone at WWDC
2) Set early upgrade date to AROUND June 20th (Mine set to Jun 20) so early adopters can still upgrade though AT&T’s & Apple systems.
3) Pre-orders start after Steve Jobs Keynote at WWDC.
4) The 22nd Event Will be for Announcing The All New CDMA iPhone (Verizon), Just a thought I don’t think that the iPhone will be on Verizon this year.
Oh. I see that both my wife’s iPhone 3G and my iPhone 3GS are eligible for an iPhone upgrade!!
Both 3G and 3GS have this same message:
As a valued AT&T customer, we can offer you a discounted iPhone upgrade with a new 2-year commitment and an $18 upgrade fee.
Did they remove the dates?
Bought iphone 3G last March or April and can’t upgrade till September. If they are letting 3GS owners do this after one year and I can’t i’m out ATT you just screwed a customer. Will wait to find out more info
I know several droid users. Hearing them talk down about the iphone reminds me of grade school when the cool shoes to have were Nike Pumps but some kids (like me) were stuck with Kangaroos. They looked similar but they were not Nike Airs.
@Greg,
Thank you for recognizing Flag Day. It has become a forgotten holiday.
,dave
can’t wait for another next generation iphone.it’s gonna be awesome.steve jobs is the greatest inventor in the whole wide world. :-)
I know, right? Remember that one time when he saved us from noisy fans on the apple III?!
Obviously, the reason behind this is that June 21st is my birthday. What else could it possibly be?
I’m putting money down that this is AT&T trying to lock up as many iPhone users as possible before a Verizon version is announced.
God knows there will be a flood of biblical proportions when AT&T subscribers move to Verizon.
It would make sense the the V version would be on sale between June and November, lets say Sept.
I t would not make any sense if the V version were not happening until next year, then the Nov date would still be OK
I’m can hardly wait to see how many fools fall for this one. Stand in line to get your ATT 4g iPhone, and be locked into a two year contract, only to find out a few weeks later that you could have moved to Verizon. Oh the pain.
I expect that AT&T’s upgrade policy is less to do with whether you’re an “early adopter” and a lot more to do with how much you spend with them. Big monthly bills –> early upgrade eligibility.
This may well explain some of the differences people are reporting, even for phones bought on the same day within the same household…
Certainly makes economic sense for AT&T, even if it won’t be universally popular…