A little late but, congrats Casualty :)
My phone has been acting so shit for too long... I really have been wanting an iPhone but the new service is even MORE expensive... like, fffff. I'm currently paying like $48 a month for phone service, and going off of the convo I had with Tim on the ride back to the office... it's going to be about double that if I want unlimited internet... oh, and you know I do.
Some of those issues you encountered makes me a bit nervous... I've never actually gotten anything from an apple store. Luckily I have some friends who work there so the levels of suck should at least be slightly reduced.
First step is to snag the job that pays well enough that I can afford that. Hopefully I can join the bandwagon sooner than... well, what would feel like an eternity of using this shitty phone :X