I became a Cingular (now ATT) customer 27 months ago when I purchased my Treo 650. At the initial purchase and at my contract renewal, their sales people insisted that I must by a data plan if I intended to use a smartphone their service. Both times I dug my heals in, insisted that I didn't need any web or email services, and they responded "Well, of course, you don't HAVE to buy a data plan."

My suspicion is that AT&T, which is no stranger to strongarm tactics, is going to try the same tack with new iPhone customers, and if confronted, will back down.

Question to someone knowledgeable in these matters: In California (where I live), isn't illegal to require the purchase of add-on services when buying a product if the services are not necessary to the products basic functionality? I can see why a contact is required for a Tivo, but an iPhone will be a useful and valuable tool without cellular data services, so why should one be required to pay for them?