So I admit it: I bought an iPhone.

That was the easy part. But I should have realized that if the customer service whizzes at AT&T could find a way to mar what was otherwise a perfectly pleasant experience, they would. After nearly nine hours, AT&T has yet to activate my iPhone, and it can’t be used until then.

When I got home, I plugged the phone into our media-server iMac and typed in my information in iTunes. I received an e-mail message at 12:10 a.m. saying: “AT&T is now processing your activation. You will receive an e-mail confirmation once your activation is complete.” I had an existing AT&T account, so I figured that adding the $20/month iPhone wireless plan shouldn’t take too long.

Then I waited. And waited. And waited.

    Full story at CNet.com.