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Well, I got the long awaited iPhone, just in time for me to be notified by at&t that I had to wait up to 24 hours for it to activate. Aggrivating to say the least, but as much as at&t reps insisted it was a “volume” problem. I knew better. Shaun activated his at the exact same time as mine, and it insantly worked. So what gives? We’re on the same plan and there was really no difference….well, there was.

Basically, all the plans that you had before your iPhone mean nothing anymore. (Except voice). When you activate your iPhone and choose a data plan, it kills any other data plan that you may have had before. The problems I had were that I had circumstances on my account that simply couldn’t be “automatically overwritten” as iTunes Activation thought it could. So, the logical thing was, let’s get it worked out. Couldn’t do that though, because…at&t shoved off any problems and refused to admit blame, so here’s what I tried and how I (successfully) activated my phone after received the dreaded “Your activation needs more time.”

1. Call the activation number right away. It’s 1-877-800-370. They’re going to BS you about it needing more time. (Don’t wait more than 10 minutes, if you’re on the phone longer than that, you’re wasting your time.)

2. Try swapping the sim card from your old phone into the iPhone (assuming its an at&t phone) and try the activation again. (Meaning…connect it to iTunes and go through the wizard)

3. If those two options don’t work, call at&t customer support. NO NOT THE ACTIVATION NUMBER! This one: 1-800-331-0500 Tell them that you’re having issues with your activation and it says there’s a conflict and you need to call for support. LIE! Do NOT tell them that it’s telling you to ait. If you want help, you need to tell them that iTunes has instructed you to call and resolve the conflict on your account.

4. If that doesn’t work. (Or you can’t get through…) Go to your nearest corporate store. CORPORATE STORE! Not the resellers. The resellers can offer you absolutely no support and they’ll just waste your time. Use this to find a store near you: http://www.wireless.att.com/find-a-store/ Once you’re there, they’ll put you on the phone with a tech who will resolve the activation issues. Tell them the same things you told the tech in the last item (Number 3), and they’ll fix your issues.

Everyone is going to tell you 24 hours to setup. AT&T HAS BEEN INSTRUCTED BY CORPORATE TO OVER EXTEND THE TIME ESTIMATIONS! Once you resolve the conflicts, go home, connect your phone to iTunes and you should be activated. If not, wait a few hours and give it a shot. YOU WILL RECEIVE AN EMAIL WHEN YOU’RE ACTIVATED!

If all else fails, go BACK into the AT&T store and raise hell until they resolve your account. It is NOT a volume problem. Everyone is pointing fingers.

Other things to keep in mind:

1. If you’re impatient and just need your phone (and you had an at&t phone), take the iPhone sim card out of the iPhone and put it in your old phone, you’ll be ok for a while until activation is completed (you get the email).

2. If you’re a porting a number. Don’t bother your old carrier, the problem lies within at&t. You need to call at&t’s number portablty center to get this worked out. I reccommend going right into a corporate store and dealing with them directly. The line that always gets them is “First day on at&t, and I already want to go back”

3. Don’t be rude to them on the phone. They’re trying, and this is their job. Let them do it, and be nice…I know you want to play with it…everyone does!

Good luck guys. Trust me, it’s well worth the wait!