Hey, my name is JT and I wonder how many of you out there have a love/hate relationship with the tech toys in your life? I guess we all really do - let me tell you about mine. And then I'll tell you about my sister's - wait 'til you read it.

OK, let's start with mine. I got a first generation iPhone about a year and a half ago. My Mom used her Juniper card and paid (insert painful groan here) about $489.00 USD. She wanted to have it engraved for me. It was going to say something cool - ok, it was pretty corny - but before I could blurt out to her, "Have them write, 'MyPhone!''' someone on the other end of the line told her she couldn't receive the free engraving for some reason. Darn. (New Juniper card? Engraving machine broken? Sigh. Mom doesn't remember the reason so I can't tell you, neither do I) But man, was I happy! Birthday gift, Christmas gift, joy! It's been almost a year and a half and I've dipped into the Apple well a few times and come up - frustrated.

The iPhone I love, really, I can surf the web and listen to music (MAJOR deal to me - gotta have my Chevelle and my Taproot) but the headset quality just doesn't rate. I think I've had 3 or 4 pairs of headsets. The one that came in the box with the iPhone "died" when the plastic (?) cover that the wires are encased in developed a tear. *Gasp!* You - you could see the exposed wires in the thing and hear static. So I went to the Apple store - it was just like my virgin trip had been - wow - I was in love again! (I'd gone the year before to get my first iPod, a real beauty, a shiny blue Nano, played Ellerman and Beck for me). That trip made me feel special. I wanted a MacBook Pro, a next gen everything and all the accessories that go with - I even wanted to be a "Genius" - but hey, I'm not - and they treated me nice and they took almost $30.00 from me for a new headset and I left and I was all giddy from seeing them again and I was smiling and I was wondering if I would EVER get a job so that I could buy stuff from them again....

Got another excuse to go in when the USB cable (Apple Dock Connector) developed a fault and 'ta-da'! my iPhone would not charge or hold a charge. I didn't know it was the cable - I thought it was the device. I needed that thing for the commute to the temporary work I found (yay!). You might be a trained runner, but you could not have beat me into the store. I once again was placated. Everyone was polite there (not always the case, but as a general rule they are). All was "Under Warranty". The replacement cable was free. I was happy.

Then, suddenly, the second headset "passed away". Only had her for what, around 6 months? Maybe? (Can't remember, wasn't planning on writing this to tell everyone then.) It had some kind of internal fault. It would skip songs (I get lots of mileage from the iPod feature in the iPhone, I told you already) and it paused and played when it felt like it. A Tech Genius guy at the Apple store told me that it wasn't the iPhone, like I'd originally thought when I'd freaked out and brought it in. It was the second set of headsets, which when they have some kind of WHATEVER will make the iPhone look like it has a bug in the software, when it doesn't. So it wasn't the tiny little thingy that covers the plug part that you insert into your phone? You see Mr. Tech Genius, it was ripping off the headset and totally came off one day. It's not? Phew! Cool! Great news! Here's another almost 30 bucks! Thank you soooo much!

NOW - I've discovered that the replacement Apple Dock Connector developed a tear similar to the one in the first headset and I have to take the new one in (I'm scared it might become dangerous, but I'm no longer working temp and if the warranty has expired and they ask me for cash...*gulp*).

With this latest frustration has come --- along with another rip in and subsequent removal of, the tiny little thing that covers the headset plug --- the SAME OLD "fault" that the second headset had. I can't pause, skip or play songs I want, the headset will decide that for me. It also won't hang up calls. Hmmmm. I hope it wasn't because it was a hot day the other day and I sweat while I was wearing the headset. Gotta be something.... I take HYPER care of the darn thing, seriously. It's all I have, it cost a lot and I love it - was it the humidity here? Or just time to pay the Apple store again?

Later: MY SISTER'S EXPERIENCE

Still Later: ME AND (AHEM) MY IPHONE'S 'SERVICE PROVIDER'

Much Later: IN THE INTEREST OF FULL DISCLOSURE