BTW, Matt's suggestion didn't work. It actually caused my phone to turn on (even though it was off) and give me that “not-an-approved-iPhone-accessory-do-you-want-Airplane-mode” message, despite not being connected to anything. Weird. Further proof that it's hosed. It'll probably stop charging over AC soon.

BTW, Matt's suggestion didn't work. It actually caused my phone to turn on (even though it was off) and give me that “not-an-approved-iPhone-accessory-do-you-want-Airplane-mode” message, despite not being connected to anything. Weird. Further proof that it's hosed. It'll probably stop charging over AC soon.

Interesting tips. Where did you find them? I'll definitely give the alcohol cleaning a try, and it might be worth trying a self-repair, not much to lose. Plus, the geek in me would love to see the insides of that little guy.

Thanks for the tip and the spare phone offer. Will try it this weekend.

I know different city, different network, but still.

My main hesitation about this plan is that the 4.0 iPhone will be another 3GS, i.e. iterative, not awesome. Sure, it'll probably have some hardware tweaks, but I doubt it will be faster, Intertubes-wise, since 4G networks aren't very common yet. They could hook it to Wi-Max to let me use Clear on it, which would totally be worth it, but that's equally doubtful, again b/c of sparse Wi-Max rollout.

So, the hedge might backfire.

I think you're correct that the OG has no air-sync feature, but I'll check on that. Nice catch. That would add another option.

The whole limping along thing might work, but it's not permanent. Plus, I'm expecting the AC-jiggle technique to fail any day. I'd rather make a call and go with it.

A new contract just seems like a bad idea. Glad you agree.

I'm not convinced that tables/netbooks/whatever are worth my time. I don't think I have a use for the size between phone (fits in pocket) and laptop (carry easily under the arm), but it's an interesting space nevertheless.

I'm leaning toward the 3G for that very reason. Edge essentially torpedos my mobile browsing, and it's not the most recent so I won't feel like a chump when the new one debuts. Thanks for the advice.

I certainly feel for you and think you're smart to stick with the platform. I agree that the new devices look really cool, but I think I'll probably be an iPhone user for a long time too.

I use the over-the-air sync on my phone, but I suspect that was a feature of the 3G phone that your current model probably doesn't have, so that won't help. I guess you could just sync things with Google and use their app for accessing info about contacts, etc. That way you could maybe limp along until the update comes, whenever that may be.

I'll be interested to know which path you take. Given the rumors about a break from AT&T, starting another 2-year sentence would be a non-starter for me.

I'm interested in the new platforms coming out. The next generation Apple iPhone and tablet vs. Android 2.1 (Nexus One) and Google's tablet… I'd really like to stick to the same platform to provide a better, more consistent experience. The next iPhone will be polished and way ahead of the Nexus One curve as Android still has a ways to go. Very interested in Jan 27th to hear more about the tablet and hoping for a sneak preview of the next iPhone.

Although I use a lot of Google services, I can still basically use them on the iPhone. They're just more usable on Android. I'll probably go with the next gen iPhone this time around, but hope that I can choose Google in the future.

As for your problem… If the price differential between the OG and the 3G isn't too great, I'd buy the 3G from your friend… Edge is just too slow! I'd use it until I wanted to upgrade to the next gen iPhone and then sell the 3G.