iphones for $250! refurb from AT&T

Another reason to dip into the smartphone segment just surfaced over on iphone atlas. AT&T are offering refurbished 8GB iphones for $249.... You can buy now and activate it later according to the official website.... Me thinks a whole lot of people who were on the edge have been tipped over.... After having just stated last week that I was going to sensibly stick with repairing or finding a used TX.... I find myself having a  serious bout of technolust. Whats holding me back... well the usual questions, can I get the iphone without a dataplan? and even if I get it minus a dataplan, is there a way to switch off EDGE? If you have the answers to these questions I'd love to here them on the forum...