iBrick

I have a 1st gen iPhone and have been waiting for 3rd party apps for ever now (I had it hacked for while, but I just hate that I can't get firmware updates without jumping through hoops). Today (July 11) everything was suppose to launch. And thus started my iBricking experience:

~ 5 p.m July 10th - Manually downloaded iTunes 7.7
~ 6 p.m July 10th - Started browsing apps
~ 7 p.m July 10th - After looking through all apps...found only 4 or 5 I want
~ 7:15 p.m Got all apps downloaded
8 a.m July 11th - Opened iTunes, plugged phone in and tried to update
8:01 - Tried to upgrade again
8:02 - Tried again
.
.
.
.
.
9 a.m - iTunes says there is an update...Yipeeee!!!
9:01 a.m - Started upgrade process
.
.
.
9:30 a.m - Everything got backed up, new firmware in place, all it has to do now is authenticate
9:35 a.m - Uh oh





I've been trying to get my phone back for about an hour and a half now and it seems I'm not the only one having problems: Digg

If I find a solution for this, I'll post it.

Update: It's now 11:12 a.m and I'm still without a phone.
Update # 2: 12:52 p.m - Still can't use my phone. I'm calling support listed at Apple.com

Update # 3: Still on hold, but I did find some info about it on the CNET Crave Blog

Below is what a user posted from his experience with Apple tech support:

Dear ,

Due to network congestion on the iTunes server, you may not be able to update or restore the software on your iPhone. Once the congestion has decreased the software should be available for you to update. It would be advisable to attempt the update later on today.

If you have attempted to restore your iPhone and it is currently in recovery mode, you will not be able to use your iPhone until the software has been restored or updated. A temporary solution may be to use your SIM in another AT&T phone or have your calls forwarded to a phone you have access to.

We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused.

If you would like to voice your concerns to Apple about this, feel free to visit apple.com/feedback

Thank-you for your patience on this matter.

Regards,
Your Apple Care Team

Final Update: - I was just able to activate my phone and sync my new apps. I'll let you guys know how the 2.0 firmware is and give you my 2cents on the apps soon.