When the original iPhone debuted a year and a half ago, I bought mine the first day and have been loving it ever since. When the 3G models came out, I anxiously awaited all the new features, however the 3G, extra memory and louder speaker weren't quite enough to get me to pull the trigger. Plus, the $10 more a month for the 3G data plan wasn't appealing.
So, I decided to hold on to my original phone for another year and wait for the next upgrade, hoping some of the rumors of Nike+ integration, 32GB, built-in iSight, and upgraded camra were in the cards.
As many places I have traveled, home and abroad, my iPhone has been with me and it has been dropped a couple of times with no ill-effects, but the other day as I was walking out of the house it dropped face down, perfectly parrallel to the ground on my concrete garage floor.
Oh *** When I picked up the phone, the screen was shattered - working, but shattered. Now, suddenly all those videos on YouTube of those poor souls dropping thier iPhones on the first day came to mind. Dammit.
Good thing I bought the extended warranty right? well, not so much, because it doesn't cover drops and I had long removed my protective case, due to the bulkiness. So off to the Apple Store on my lunch break for a fix, here I was told they could repair the screen for $199, amazing that was the same cost of the new 3G phone. So, as you guessed I ponied up the money (actually I chose the 16GB model) and walked out of the store with a new iPhone 3G - and a low-profile protective case. An expensive lesson, no doubt.
Well, that is one way to upgrade, but I don't recommend it.
--Sean P. Holman
Tech Editor - Four Wheeler Magazine