Until November, at least.<br/><br/>Many of you have noticed (and expressed hate) at all of my “iXXXXX” away messages ever since the <a href=”http://www.apple.com/iphone/” target=”_blank”>iPhone 3G</a> was announced. I had held off on the original iPhone because it was lacking two features that I really cared about (GPS and fast internet)… The wait was well worth it.<br/><br/>With the announcement of the new product, Apple outlined pricing and said that customers who were ineligible for equipment upgrades at the time (me) would be individually considered for the discounted rate based on how long they had been a member, how long until they are upgrade eligible, and how timely they have been with paying their bills… I figured I was a shoe-in; I have been a customer for about eight years, I use paperless billing and have had automatic payments since day 1 (never late), and I have only four months until I’m technically eligible for an upgrade.<br/><br/>Yesterday, <a href=”http://www.macrumors.com/2008/07/01/atandt-iphone-3g-pricing-details/” target=”_blank”>they announced</a> that this whole evaluation thing was no longer happening; upgrade discounts are as clearly cut as they have ever been… If you’re not eligible, you’re not eligible.<br/><br/>Apple, AT&amp;T, thanks for getting my hopes up and crushing me like the nobody that I am… I <span style=”font-style: italic;”>really</span> appreciate it.<br/><br/>On November 4, 2008, expect a post about my new iPhone 3G (maybe even FROM it), but I’ll be damned if I’m shelling out an extra $200 to get it before then. Oh and those annoying away messages? Don’t worry, they were annoying for me too; they’re gone.<br/>