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Today, AT&T revealed the service plans that will be made available to iPhone users when it starts selling the device this Friday. Apple and the carrier also announced iPhone users will be able to activate their smartphones at home, through iTunes running on a PC or Mac.

All plans, after a 36 one-time activation fee, feature unlimited mobile-to-mobile calls, unlimited data (i.e. e-mail and Internet), roll over minutes, 200 SMS text messages, and Visual Voicemail, which allows you to see who left messages and listen to them in the order you choose.

There are three basic plans: $59.99, $79.99, and $99.99, with 450 minutes of talk time and 5,000 weekend minutes; 900 minutes talk, unlimited weekend; and 1,350 minutes talk, unlimited weekend, respectively per month. Heavy users will have the option of choosing bundles of 2,000 ($120), 4,000 ($170), and 6,000 ($220) minutes.


     Basic iPhone Service Plans. See here for all plans.

AT&T will also offer a number of family plans of 700 ($80), 1400 ($100), 2100 ($120), 3,000 ($160), 4,000 ($210) and 6,000 ($310) shared minutes. Each line costs an additional $30.

Current AT&T customers can add an iPhone data plan for $20 with the basic 200 text messages, $30 with 1500 SMS messages, and $40 with unlimited messaging.

According to AT&T and Apple, activating iPhone an iPhone should only take minutes, as iTunes guides the user through the steps to choose a service plan, authorize their credit and activate their iPhone. Once activated, users can then sync all of their phone numbers and other contact information, calendars, e-mail accounts, Web browser bookmarks, music, photos, podcasts, TV shows and movies just like they would an iPod with iTunes.

After waiting on a line for hours, folks will likely want to get their iPhone in hand as quick as possible. That's the bright side of AT&T and Apple enabling users to activate their iPhone at home. Should you run into a problem, however, you may spend a lot of time on your landline, along with others, trying to get help.

The iPhone goes on sale this Friday at 6:00 p.m. local time. The 4GB model will sell for $499 and the 8GB model for $599, both with a 2-year contract.