If you felt a bit snubbed after
reading up on just how much loot you'd be paying out if and / or when your dear
iPhone does break, you're not alone by a long shot. Reportedly, New York's Consumer Protection Board "issued a letter to Apple's CEO Monday asking for the iPhone to be a little more consumer-friendly," noting that the $79 charged to replace the battery, $29 "loaner fee" for using a temporary handset, and the ten-percent restocking fee were all asking too much. Moreover, the CPB suggested that "consumers should be able to replace the battery themselves," which admittedly seems to be a (somewhat)
common belief. Granted, not all of these requests are exactly rational, but more importantly, we highly doubt his Steveness is gonna go change up price schemes to appease a few disgruntled board members, amiright?
For those invited to private launch parties in New York and Chicago last Thursday, you've probably been playing with your shiny new US E71 all weekend. For everyone else, today's the day. The Americas version of the handset -- which includes GSM 850/900/1800/1900 and HSDPA 850/1900 support -- is finally on sale to the general public through a variety of retailers. Now, the only problems are sneaking out of the office early, finding a store with stock and coming up with approximately $500.
